Ukraine’s surprise incursion into Russia saw troops advance further into enemy territory on Thursday.
The audacious attack by Ukrainian soldiers in tanks and armoured vehicles is the largest attack on Russia since the Second World War.
On Thursday, Ukraine’s Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi said forces had moved forward almost a mile in 24 hours with 82 settlements now under Kyiv’s control.
They include the town of Sudhzha, which, with a population of 5,000, is the largest town Ukraine has seized so far in the war.
Kursk’s acting governor, Alexei Smirnov, has now ordered the evacuation of the Glushkovo region, about 28 miles northwest of Sudzha.
Meanwhile, Volodymyr Zelensky has again hinted at other possible offensive actions on Russian territory.
“We must clearly guarantee at the legislative level that our warriors, who participate, for example, in the Kursk operation and will participate in all our other actions on the territory of the aggressor state, will receive absolutely all payments and benefits designated for the front line,” he said in an address posted on Telegram.
The updates comes as it emerged that British Challenger 2 tanks were playing a crucial role in the incursion.
Ukraine’s powerful 82nd Air Assault Brigade has been operating the British tanks since last year and is confirmed to have been taking part in the Kursk offensive.
Key Points
- Ukraine seize largest town in Russia yet
- British tanks used in Russia incursion
- Ukraine says it has set up a military office in occupied Kursk region
- Ukraine is ‘poking’ Russia to use nuclear weapons - Russian MP
- Fortifications show Putin ‘concerned’ about advance
Two killed, 12 injured in Russian bomb attacks on Kharkiv
04:28
Arpan Rai
Russian guided bomb attacks killed at least two people and injured 12 others in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, local authorities said.
The strike hit a civilian enterprise in Kupiansk district, the regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram.
A warehouse caught fire as a result of the strike, the regional prosecutors said on Telegram, adding that six employees were injured.
Six more people, including a 12-year-old child, were wounded in the Zolochiv village when Russian forces dropped two bombs, the regional police said on Telegram.
Administrative buildings, a kindergarten, and over 20 private homes were damaged in this attack, the police added.
Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, and the surrounding region have long been targeted by Russian attacks, and Moscow troops have for months been pummelling Ukraine‘s border regions with highly destructive guided bombs.
Ukraine touts capture of large group of soldiers inside Russia
04:19
Arpan Rai
Ukrainian special forces captured a group of more than 100 Russian soldiers during Kyiv’s cross-border incursion into the western Russian region of Kursk, head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) Vasyl Maliuk said yesterday.
“We conducted a sophisticated operation, as a result of which 102 Russians were captured. We are already thinking in perspective how to make the most of this – to bring our defenders home,” he said on Telegram referring to a possible prisoner swap.
The 102 servicemen of Russia’s 488th Guards Motorized Rifle Regiment and its “Akhmat” unit are the largest group of soldiers to be captured at the same time since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, a source in the SBU said.
“They captured and cleared a sprawling, concrete and well-fortified company stronghold from all sides – with underground communications and personnel accommodation, a canteen, an armoury and even a bathhouse,” the source said.
Where is Sudzha?
03:30
Alex Ross
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday that his country’s troops had taken full control of Sudzha, the largest Russian town to fall to Ukraine‘s forces since the start of their cross-border incursion more than a week ago.Although it had a prewar population of only around 5,000 people, Sudzha is the administrative centre for the border area of Russia’s Kursk region and is larger than any of the other towns or settlements that Ukraine says its forces have taken since the incursion began on 6 August.Zelensky said Ukraine‘s military was setting up a command office in Sudzha, which suggests that Ukraine might plan to remain in the Kursk region long-term — or just signal Moscow that it may intend to do so.
He didn’t elaborate on what functions the office might handle, though he said earlier that Ukraine would be distributing humanitarian aid to Sudzha residents.
Zelensky’s reason for the launching surprise incursion on Kursk region
02:30
Alex Ross
The surprise Ukrainian incursion has reframed the war and caused chaos in the Kursk region, leading to the evacuation of more than 120,000 civilians, according to Russian authorities, and the capture of at least 100 Russian troops, according to Kyiv.Volodymyr Zelensky has said one of the reasons for the incursion was to protect neighboring Ukrainian regions. “The more Russian military presence is destroyed in the border regions, the closer peace and real security will be for our state. The Russian state must be responsible for what it has done,” he said Tuesday.Russia has seen previous raids of its territory in the war, but the Kursk incursion is notable for its size, speed, the reported involvement of battle-hardened Ukrainian brigades, and the length of time they have stayed inside Russia. As many as 10,000 Ukrainian troops are involved, according to Western military analysts.The incursion also marks the first time foreign troops have invaded and held Russian territory since Nazi Germany did in the Second World War
Kursk incursion is a ‘massive gamble’
01:30
Alex Ross
Military commentators have been analysing the impact of Ukraine’s surprise incursion on the Kursk region on the ongoing war.
Among them is Polish military expert Konrad Muzyka, who said apart from a reputational blow to President Vladimir Putin, the biggest invasion of Russia since World War Two had destroyed Russian forces, captured soldiers who can be traded and created a sore on Russia’s flank.
However, he also warned that trying to hold a swathe of Russian land could open up Ukrainian forces to potentially heavy losses, pointing to manpower problems that have dogged Ukraine for months in its war with a much larger foe.
The counter-invasion was “a massive gamble” that in the short term was paying off, Muzyka said.
“But there may soon come a time when costs associated with the attack in the Kursk region will outweigh the benefits, especially given the steady pace of Russian advances in the Donetsk region,” he said.
What next?
Friday 16 August 2024 00:30
Alex Ross
As Ukraine’s forces continue the incursion into Russian territory, many are speculating how far they will be able, or want, to go.
On Thursday, Ukraine’s top commander Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi said Kyiv had set up a military commandant’s office in the occupied part of Russia’s Kursk region where he said his forces were still advancing.
It is the strongest sign yet that Kyiv’s forces plan to dig in after launching a lightning cross-border assault.
Serhiy Zgurets, a Kyiv-based military analyst, predicted Ukraine would seek to retain control of the land between the towns of Rylsk, Korenevoye and Sudzha and the border, giving it control of a roughly 20-km-wide strip of Russian territory.
The area, he said, could be defended by a small force using long-range artillery systems and air defences.
“This line is not difficult to defend, given there are few roads and a large number of rivers,” Zgurets said, adding that the area could be easily supplied from the Ukrainian region of Sumy across the border.
He said he didn’t expect troops to press towards the Russian regional capital of Kursk, something that could expose them to attacks from the flanks.
Russia to toughen defences
Thursday 15 August 2024 23:30
Alex Ross
Russia has acknowledged that Ukrainian forces were still on the attack, adding it would beef up its border defences, improve command and control and send in additional forces.
“The enemy is pushing, it is trying to get through from everywhere, push through,” said Major General Apti Alaudinov, commander of Chechnya’s Akhmat special forces who are fighting in Kursk. “But every day the enemy’s forces are melting.”
Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov said the general staff had prepared a series of measures to defend Russia’s border regions of Kursk, Bryansk and Belgorod - which cover an area the size of Portugal.
Heavy fighting continues on eastern front
Thursday 15 August 2024 22:30
Alex Ross
While all international focus seems to be on Ukraine’s incursion into the Kursk region of Russia, there appears to be no sign of fighting elsewhere.
On Ukraine’s eastern front, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi reported the heaviest fighting in weeks near the city of Pokrovsk, an important logistics hub.
Syrskyi told Zelenskiy in his report by video link that the situation in the east and south where Russia has already captured swathes of the country was “difficult but under control”.
“The main efforts are focused on preventing the enemy from advancing in the directions of Toretsk and Pokrovsk, inflicting maximum losses, and creating favourable conditions for further actions,” he said.
How much territory has Ukraine taken in Russia?
Thursday 15 August 2024 21:30
Alex Ross
Ukrainian forces have captured hundreds of square miles of territory inside Russia in one of the most significant incursions into Russia since the Secind World War.
Thousands of Ukrainian troops smashed over the border from Ukraine’s Sumy region into the neighbouring Russian Kursk region on 6 August.
Since then, Kyiv’s forces have claimed to have taken more land in just over a week than Russia has in Ukraine during this entire calendar year.
It is the largest foreign attack on sovereign Russian territory since the Second World War.
Ukraine seize largest town in Russia yet
Thursday 15 August 2024 20:19
Alex Ross
Volodymyr Zelensky has said his troops have full control of the Russian town of Sudzha.
It is the largest town Ukraine has seized so far in the war, with a population of around 5,000, and it is home to a measuring station for Russian natural gas that flows through pipelines to Europe.
It’s another sign of the advancement into Russia since the surprise attack on 6 August.
Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi said Ukrainian forces had taken over 82 settlements since the start of the incursion, and a total area of 440 square miles (1,150 sq km).
British tanks used to drive back Putin’s forces during Ukraine’s attack in Russia
Thursday 15 August 2024 19:29
Alex Ross
British tanks have been used to force back Vladimir Putin’s troops during Ukraine’s audacious incursion into Russia.
Defence chiefs have hailed the contribution of Challenger 2 tanks, saying they are playing a crucial role in Volodymyr Zelensky’s startling tactic of using troops on Russian soil after years of defensive combat.
It is the first time UK tanks operated by Ukrainian troops have been used in combat on Russian territory, and comes as the incursion into the Kursk region expands as it enters a second week.
US-Russian dual national convicted of treason
Thursday 15 August 2024 18:00
Alex Ross
A US-Russian dual national has been convicted of treason in a Russian court and sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges stemming from a donation of about $52 to a charity aiding Ukraine.
Ksenia Khavana was identified by Russian authorities by her maiden name of Ksenia Karelina, was arrested in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg in February and pleaded guilty in a closed trial last week, news reports said.
Khavana, a 33-year-old former ballet dancer, reportedly obtained U.S. citizenship after marrying an American and moving to Los Angeles.
She had returned to Russia to visit her family.She reportedly had her phone confiscated after arriving in Yekaterinburg in January and police found evidence on the phone of the donation.
Soon before her planned departure, she was jailed for 15 days on petty hooliganism charges and then charged with treason.
Russia’s Federal Security Service said she “proactively collected money in the interests of one of the Ukrainian organizations, which was subsequently used to purchase tactical medical supplies, equipment, weapons, and ammunition for the Ukrainian armed forces.”
Rise in entries for A-levels in Russian
Thursday 15 August 2024 17:29
Alex Ross
Ukrainian refugees may be fuelling a rise in entries for A-level Russian, it has been suggested.
A-level exam data shows there were 1,044 entries for the subject this summer, up from 827 in 2023 - a 26% increase.
It means that entries for the subject are now at their highest level since 2018, when the number stood at 1,160.
Sir Ian Bauckham, Ofqual’s chief regulator, said: “It’s difficult to be precise about why exactly you see changes in these lesser taught languages, but I think we can all imagine that some Ukrainian refugees who came to the UK over the last couple of years - many of whom are proficient in Russian - may have chosen to enter A-level Russian, and done that using their school or college as an exam centre.
“So it’s likely that that kind of change is behind the changes that you see in entry figures for subjects like Russian.”
Teenagers who came to the UK when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 with knowledge of Russian are likely to have started A-level courses in the autumn of that year and would be receiving their results this summer - two years later, which is the usual length of an A-level course.
Ukraine says it has set up a military office in occupied Kursk region
Thursday 15 August 2024 13:43
Alexander Butler
Ukraine’s top commander says Kyiv has set up a military commandant’s office in the occupied Kursk region of Russia.
Oleksandr Syrskyi said Ukrainian forces have taken up to 1.5km (0.93 miles) of territory in the region in the last 24 hours - and are still advancing.
Mr Syrskyi told Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a video published by the Ukrainian leader that Kyiv’s forces had advanced 35km (21.7 miles) into the Kursk region since launching its attack last week.
The Ukraine incursion has called Putin’s bluff – and rightly damaged his reputation
Thursday 15 August 2024 13:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine is ‘provoking and poking’ Russia to use nuclear weapons, Russian MP says
Thursday 15 August 2024 12:30
Alexander Butler
A Russian MP has insisted that the Ukraine is ‘provoking and poking’ her country to use ominous nuclear weapons threats.
Maria Butina appeared on Newsnight, insisting that Ukraine’s goal was to “escalate the conflict”, and that any ‘captured’ Russian territory would quickly be taken back.
“Russia will do everything to protect its territory”, she said. “They’re attacking nuclear plants...yes, they’re provoking a nuclear conflict..they have no understanding of what it’s going to be.”
“By trying to get PR points from the West, they actually put in danger the whole world.”
UK ministry of defence statement on British tanks in Russia
Thursday 15 August 2024 11:52
Alexander Butler
“There has been no change in UK government policy, under Article 51 of the UN Charter Ukraine has a clear right of self-defence against Russia’s illegal attacks, that does not preclude operations inside Russia.
“We make clear during the gifting process that equipment is to be used in line with international law.”
Russia sentences ballerina to 12 years in jail for donating £40 to charity
Thursday 15 August 2024 11:07
Alexander Butler
A Russian-American ballerina has been jailed for 12 years in Russia for donating £40 to a charity supporting Ukraine.
Ksenia Karelina pleaded guilty at her closed trial in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, where her case was heard by the same court that convicted Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich of espionage in July.
Her supporters say she had donated £40 to Razom for Ukraine, a New York-based charity that provides humanitarian aid to children and elderly people in Ukraine
Russia sends forces of its Eastern military district to Mongolia for drills
Thursday 15 August 2024 10:30
Alexander Butler
Russia has sent forces of its Eastern military district to Mongolia to participate in joint drills, state news agency TASS said on Thursday, quoting the defence ministry.
Moscow, currently fighting a 10-day-old incursion by Ukrainian forces into western Russia, has continued to stage joint military exercises with foreign partners throughout the Ukraine war.
British tanks used in Russia incursion
Thursday 15 August 2024 10:12
Alexander Butler
British tanks have been used by Ukrainian troops in their cross-border assault into Russia just over a week ago, The Independent understands.
British Challenger 2 tanks were used during the shock Ukrainian incursion, according to a UK source, in the first time they have been rolled out on Russian territory.
The UK agreed to give Ukraine 14 of its Challenger 2 tanks in January 2023 in a move that prompted Germany and the United States to follow suit with their versions.
Pictured: Ukrainian troops on the frontline
Thursday 15 August 2024 10:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine denies involvement in Nord Stream damage
Thursday 15 August 2024 09:48
Alexander Butler
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak denied his country’s involvement in explosions which damaged the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline and instead pointed the finger at Russia in comments to Reuters on Thursday.
“Such an act can only be carried out with extensive technical and financial resources... And who possessed all this at the time of the bombing? Only Russia,”
Pictured: Russian fighter jets damaged after Ukraine drone strike
Thursday 15 August 2024 09:30
Alexander Butler
Satellite images show the devastating impact of Ukrainian drone strikes on an airfield in Russia.
Four air bases were hit in a massive Ukrainian drone strike in the early hours of Wednesday morning, including the Borisoglebsk Air Base.
Russia offers £1,300 salary to dig trenches in Kursk
Thursday 15 August 2024 09:29
Alexander Butler
Russian authorities have appealed for citizens to apply for jobs which involve digging trenches in Kursk.
Avito, a Russian job site, posted the listings with a salary 150,000-371,000 rubles (around £1,300-£3,200).
A second job listing details “round the clock” working involving “digging trenches” on the “second line of defence”.
“We provide: Three meals a day; All necessary tools; Work clothes; Transportation to the place of work at the expense of the company,” one advertisement read.
Exclusive: Ukraine’s plan to force Putin to retreat in shame
Thursday 15 August 2024 09:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine’s surprise attack inside Russia is the only way to force Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table as part of a “psychological” tactic to win the war, president Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief adviser has told The Independent.
In its most successful move of the two-and-a-half-year conflict, Kyiv has captured more Russian land in the past seven days than Moscow has taken in Ukraine all year.
Ukrainian forces have steadily advanced across the border into the Kursk region, taking over towns and villages and forcing hundreds of thousands of ordinary Russians to flee their homes.
Fortifications show Putin ‘concerned’ about advance
Thursday 15 August 2024 08:35
Alexander Butler
Russian troops have hastily built fortifications miles north of Ukraine’s frontline in Kursk in a sign Vladimir Putin is “concerned” about Kyiv’s advance, a US think tank said.
New satellite images from Maxar show a series of field fortifications - including trenches and anti-vehicle ditches - have been built in the Lgov area.
The Institute for the Study of War said this suggests the Russian military was “concerned about potential continued and rapid Ukrainian mechanised northward advances”.
Russia offers up to $4,000 for digging trenches in Kursk
Thursday 15 August 2024 08:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
The Russian government is offering between $1,600 (£1,246) and $4,000 (£3,115) for digging trenches in the Kursk region in an effort to deter Ukraine’s military advancement, CNN reported.
Moscow posted online advertisements for job vacancies for trench diggers as Ukrainian officials yesterday said they controlled 1,000 sq km of Russian territory.
Satellite images show Russian forces have dug trenches nearly 45-50km from the border with Ukraine, with the furthest point being near Kursk.
Ukraine gambled on an incursion deep into Russian territory. The bold move changed the battlefield
Thursday 15 August 2024 08:00
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukraine’s stunning incursion into Russia’s Kursk border region was a bold gamble for the country’s military commanders, who committed their limited resources to a risky assault on a nuclear-armed enemy with no assurance of success.
After the first signs of progress, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky broke his silence and spelled out Kyiv’s daily advances to his war-weary public. By Wednesday, Ukrainian officials said they controlled 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) of enemy territory, including at least 74 settlements and hundreds of Russian prisoners of war.
But a week after it began, the overall aim of the daring operation is still unclear: Will Ukraine dig in and keep the conquered territory, advance further into Russian territory or pull back?
What is clear is that the incursion has changed the battlefield. The shock of Ukraine’s thunder run revealed chinks in the armor of its powerful adversary. The attack also risked aggravating Ukraine’s own weaknesses by extending the front line and committing new troops at a time when military leaders are short on manpower.
To conduct the Kursk operation, Kyiv deployed battalions drawn from multiple brigades, some of which were pulled from the hottest parts of the front line, where Russia’s advance has continued unabated. So far, Moscow’s overall strategic advantage is intact.
“The stretching of the front line for us is also stretching the front line for the enemy,” said the commander of the 14th Regiment of Unmanned Drones, who uses the call sign Charlie, after he participated in the opening stage of the offensive.
“Only we have prepared for this operation in detail. The Russians were not prepared for this operation at all.”
As the offensive enters its second week, Ukrainian forces are pushing out in several directions from the Russian town of Sudzha.
Images from the battlefield showing columns of destroyed Russian weaponry are reminiscent of Ukraine’s successful counteroffensives in 2022 in Kherson and Kharkiv. The photos are also a boon to national morale that deflated after the failed 2023 summer counteroffensive and months of recent territorial losses in the east.
But some analysts are reserving judgment on whether the Kursk region is the right theater to launch an offensive. Estimates of the number of troops operating there range from 5,000 to 12,000.
Within a week, Ukraine claimed to have captured almost as much Russian land in Kursk as Russian forces took in Ukraine in the last seven months, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank.
Russian authorities acknowledged the Ukrainian gains but described them as smaller. Even so, they have evacuated about 132,000 people.
Hundreds of Russian prisoners were blindfolded and ferried away in trucks in the opening moments of the lightning advance. They could be used in future prisoner swaps to free thousands of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians in captivity.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said the fighting in Kursk had lead his Russian counterpart, Tatyana Moskalkova, to initiate a conversation about prisoner swaps, the first time such a request has come from Moscow.
Politically, the incursion turned the tables on Russia and reset the terms of a conflict in which Ukraine increasingly seemed doomed to accept unfavorable cease-fire terms. The strike was also a powerful example of Ukrainian determination and a message to Western allies that have dithered on allowing donated weapons to be used for deeper strikes inside Russian territory.
The assault has shown that the fear of crossing Russian “red lines” that could lead to nuclear escalation “is a myth, and that Ukraine’s battle-hardened military remains a formidable force,” wrote Taras Kuzio, a professor of political science at the National University Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak suggested that the incursion may also strengthen Kyiv’s hand in future negotiations with Russia. Occupying part of Russian territory ahead of any cease-fire talks may give Ukraine some leverage.
Though the fighting continues, the territory currently under Ukrainian control is, by itself, of little economic or strategic value.“There is some important gas infrastructure in the area, but its usefulness is likely to be limited other than as a minor bargaining chip. Ukrainians have also cut a railway line running from Lgov to Belgorod,” said Pasi Paroinen of the Black Bird Group, a Finland-based open-source intelligence agency that monitors the war.
Major military bases are far from the current area of operations, and Ukrainian advances are expected to slow as Russia sends in more forces.
Ukrainian officials have said they do not intend to occupy Kursk, but they may seek to create a buffer zone to protect settlements in the bordering Sumy region from relentless Russian artillery attacks and to block supply lines to the northeast.
Forcing Russia to deploy reserves intended for other parts of the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line was the minimum aim, said Charlie, the commander. But so far, Moscow’s focus in the Donetsk region has not changed.
Some Ukrainian troops were pulled from those very lines, where manpower shortages were a key factor that contributed to territorial losses this year.In the strategically significant Pokrovsk area, which is the main thrust of Russia’s offensive effort, soldiers have seen few improvements since the Kursk incursion.
“Nothing has changed,” said a soldier known by the call sign Kyianyn. “If anything, I see the increase in Russian offensive actions.”But the Kursk operation “showed they can’t defend their own territory,” he said. “All of us are inspired here. Many of our soldiers wanted to go to Kursk and push them straight to the Kremlin.”
Targeting Russia’s Northern Grouping of Forces, which feeds the Kharkiv front, is a key goal, said Konstantin Mashovets, a Ukrainian military expert. Some Russian units have reportedly moved from Vovchansk in Kharkiv.
In the south, a small number of Russian units were redeployed from the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, said Dmytro Lykhovii, the spokesperson of the Tavria operational group. But that hasn’t affected Russian attacks.
“We even see an increase in (Russian) activity,” Mr Lykhovii said.The Kursk operation has also served to draw attention away from the eastern front, where tens of thousands of Ukrainians have been killed and wounded, and where the Ukrainian military has struggled to repair cracks in its defenses.
Most territorial losses in June and July were recorded in the Pokrovsk area, which is near a logistics hub, with fighting intensifying near the towns of Toretsk and Chasiv Yar.
Russian forces dialed up those attacks to capitalize on troop fatigue and shortages. On many occasions, the losses were the result of poorly timed troop rotations and blunders that cast doubt about the overall strategy of the Ukrainian military’s General Staff.
“There is no way Russia will stop its actions in the parts of the front line where they are tactically succeeding,” Mr Mashovets said.
“There, they will push and squeeze until their last man is standing, no matter what.” But the push into Kursk might force the Kremlin to pull reserves “from the parts of the front line that are of secondary importance.”
Zelensky confirms more weapons for Ukraine
Thursday 15 August 2024 07:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed more weapons for Ukrainian forces as Kyiv continues its strikes into Putin’s airfields.
He met with government officials yesterday to discuss support for military actions in the Kursk region.
In a video message posted on X, Mr Zelensky said: “Our Ukrainian drones are working exactly as needed.
“However, there are things that drones alone cannot achieve, unfortunately. We need other weapons—missile systems.”
Watch here.
Nearly 200,000 forced to flee
Thursday 15 August 2024 07:00
Alexander Butler
Nearly 200,000 Russians have been forced to evacuate border regions near the site where, during World War Two in 1943, the Red Army defeated Nazi forces in one of the world’s biggest-ever tank battles.
Mr Putin said Ukraine “with the help of its Western masters” was aiming to improve Kyiv’s negotiating position ahead of possible peace talks.
Mr Zelensky has said the incursion is meant to pressure Russian forces and “restore justice” after Russia’s invasion.
Russia racing against time to dig trenches in Kursk
Thursday 15 August 2024 06:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Russia has been digging trenches in Kursk to prevent the Ukrainian troops from advancing further into Vladimir Putin’s territory, satellite images show.
Ukrainian troops have pushed into the Kursk region of Russia, just north of their border, in the most extensive incursion by Kyiv’s forces in the 30-month-long war.
Russian forces have dug trenches nearly 45-50km from the border with Ukraine to deter the military advance. “The farthest point is near Kursk, 75km from the border,” Independent Russian news outlet Agentstvo reported.
The “trenches appeared at the intersection, which was passed by convoys of Russian equipment sent to the Kursk region on Friday”, it added.
Russian forces are rapidly digging a network of trenches in Kursk Oblast, with only one catch:
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) August 14, 2024
The trenches are 45km behind the border.
Russian forces have been developing a trench network that, if fallen back to, would cede Ukraine a massive amount of territory. pic.twitter.com/dXje3n1qn8
Russia intensifies attacks in eastern Ukraine
Thursday 15 August 2024 06:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine takes more than 100 Russian prisoners
Thursday 15 August 2024 05:32
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukrainian troops have taken more than 100 Russian prisoners during their cross-border advance into Russia, military commander Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has suggested the prisoners will eventually be swapped for Ukrainian prisoners of war, referring to them as an “exchange fund”.
Ukraine’s deputy prime minister, Iryna Vereschuk, said yesterday that the military plans to open humanitarian corridors that would allow civilians in Ukraine-controlled areas of the Kursk region to head elsewhere in Russia or into Ukraine.
Zelensky says Ukraine’s advance will create a buffer zone
Thursday 15 August 2024 05:15
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukraine says its territorial gains in Russia will provide a strategic buffer zone to protect its own border areas from Russian attacks.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he met top officials to discuss the humanitarian situation and establishing a military commandant’s offices “if needed” in an occupied area that Kyiv says exceeds 1,000sq km.
“We continue to advance further in Kursk,” Mr Zelensky wrote on Telegram, adding: “from one to two km in various areas since the start of the day”.
He suggested the growing number of Russian prisoners of war taken in Kursk could be exchanged for Ukrainian fighters.“Our advance in Kursk is going well today – we are reaching our strategic goal. The ‘exchange fund’ for our state has also been significantly replenished.”
Watch: Fire at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant as Ukrainian troops advance into Russia
Thursday 15 August 2024 05:00
Alexander Butler
Ukrainian soldiers ambush truck filled with Russian troops
Thursday 15 August 2024 04:30
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Ukrainian soldiers have ambushed a truck filled with Russian troops as they continue their Kursk offensive.
Bodycam footage shows Ukrainian soldiers in pursuit of Vladimir Putin’s soldiers with grenades and guns.
A military vehicle also bursts into flames with plumes of black smoke sent billowing up into the air.
Watch here.
Russia orders evacuation of thousands from Kursk region
Thursday 15 August 2024 04:13
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Authorities in Russia’s Kursk region have decided to evacuate the population of its Glushkov district, acting governor Alexei Smirnov said, amid the continued advance of Ukrainian forces into the border region.
Police and other state bodies would coordinate to evacuate 20,000 people from the district directly bordering Ukraine, Mr Smirnov said on the Telegram.
Ukraine said yesterday its cross-border invasion had advanced one to two kilometres into the Kursk region since the start of the day and that its troops had finished clearing the Russian border town of Sudzha of Moscow’s forces.
Russian officials have said that nearly 200,000 people were being evacuated following the attack.
Are cheap holidays on offer because Russians can’t travel outside their country?
Thursday 15 August 2024 04:00
Alexander Butler
More Russians are urged to flee Ukraine's cross-border attack as the Kremlin scrambles to respo
Thursday 15 August 2024 03:00
Alexander Butler
Russian artist released in swap builds a new life in Germany, now free to marry her partner
Thursday 15 August 2024 02:00
Alexander Butler
Putin tells 76,000 Russians to evacuate in the wake of Ukrainian advance
Thursday 15 August 2024 01:00
Alexander Butler
Watch: Thick dark smoke rises from Russia-occupied nuclear plant during fire
Wednesday 14 August 2024 23:00
Alexander Butler
Dark smoke plumes pour into the sky meters above a cooling tower at a Russia-occupied nuclear plant on Sunday 11 August.
A Russian governor claimed the fire began with Ukrainian shelling while Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Vladimir Putin’s forces had caused the fire.
The UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear watchdog said experts “witnessed thick dark smoke” after hearing multiple explosions throughout the evening.
It comes as the Russian defence ministry said Ukrainian troops had advanced as much as 19 miles into Russia’s Kursk region in an audacious cross-border attack that began over a week ago.
Putin’s greatest fear is coming true – and he’s panicking
Wednesday 14 August 2024 22:00
Alexander Butler
Thousands of Ukraine troops ready to defend land captured in daring attack into Russia
Wednesday 14 August 2024 21:00
Alexander Butler
Ukraine keeps advancing in attack inside Russia that has humiliated Putin
Wednesday 14 August 2024 20:00
Alexander Butler
Watch: Russia will be held accountable as Ukraine continue advance into Kursk, warns Zelensky
Wednesday 14 August 2024 19:00
Alexander Butler