Ukraine has launched a new offensive in the Kursk oblast, according to reports from the Russian Ministry of Defense and Russian milbloggers on Telegram.
Russian sources say Ukrainian troops attacked southeast of Sudzha, moving toward the settlements of Fanaseyevka and Ulanok.
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The Zapiski Veterana Telegram channel estimated that the advancing Ukrainian units include around 500 personnel and 50 armored vehicles.
Meanwhile, fighting in the Rylsk region has damaged a gas pipeline, triggering a fire and forcing a shutdown that left two settlements without gas, Kursk Oblast governor Alexander Khinshtein reported.
Russian troops have reportedly lost control over Cherkasskaya Konopelka, while milblogger Alex Parker Returns said that Ukrainian forces captured Ulanok. He described the offensive as beginning “like a bolt from the blue.”
According to the “War correspondents of the Russian Spring” Telegram channel, Ukrainian forces started the operation early in the morning Thursday with demining efforts, followed by armored groups advancing from the Makhnovka side, flanking Cherkasskaya Konopelka, and moving toward Ulanok.
After 2 p.m. Kyiv time, the Russian Defense Ministry responded, stating: “Since the morning of Feb. 6, Ukrainian armed formations have been launching counteroffensive actions toward the settlements of Cherkasskaya Konopelka and Ulanok in Kursk Oblast.”
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The report claimed that the AFU deployed up to two mechanized battalions on armored vehicles, and assault groups launched several waves of attacks in the area.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that its “North” group of troops identified the Ukrainian forces, and with aviation support, inflicted fire damage on the assault groups.
By 2 p.m., the ministry claimed that Ukrainian attacks had been repelled and that the settlements were back under Russian control.
The Russian ministry also reported that Ukraine had lost six tanks, three obstacle clearance vehicles, three infantry fighting vehicles, and 14 armored combat vehicles.
However, the Ukrainian General Staff did not mention counteroffensive actions in the Kursk region in its report at 4 p.m. Kyiv time, stating instead that Ukrainian defenders had repelled three Russian attacks.
The report added that, since the morning, the Russians had carried out 26 airstrikes, dropped a total of 40 guided aerial bombs on Ukrainian positions and populated areas, and launched 287 artillery attacks.
As of the end of January, Ukrainian forces controlled 442 square kilometers (170 square miles) of the Kursk region—almost three times less than at the peak of the offensive that began in August, when they occupied 1,300 square kilometers (503 square miles) within two weeks.
During January, experts from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that the Russian army had managed to recapture approximately 40 square kilometers (15 square miles).
Russian forces have suffered nearly 40,000 casualties, including over 16,000 killed, in the six months since Ukraine launched its Kursk offensive on Aug. 6, 2024, according to the Ukrainian General Staff.
The operation aimed to prevent a new Russian assault on Ukraine’s Sumy and Kharkiv regions, and has forced Russia to divert significant resources to the area, weakening its other frontlines.
Russia also sought help from North Korea, which sent 12,000 troops. However, nearly 4,000 North Korean soldiers were lost, and one of the three brigades was destroyed, prompting their withdrawal from the front.
Ukrainian forces captured 909 Russian soldiers, bolstering the prisoner exchange pool and enabling the return of hundreds of Ukrainian defenders. As of Feb. 5, Russia lost significant military equipment, including 131 tanks, 689 armored vehicles, 386 artillery systems, and over 900 UAVs.
After Ukrainian forces seized part of Russia’s Kursk region last summer, Putin declared defending it a top priority. Despite ongoing Russian advances in eastern Ukraine, Kyiv is reportedly holding onto its Kursk gains as leverage for future negotiations.
The occupation of Russian territory is a personal blow to Putin, whose image relies on defending the nation’s interests, as per Bloomberg’s report.
Around 150,000 people have fled Kursk due to the fighting, and protests have erupted over the government’s failure to protect civilians.
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