Zelenskyy: the operation in the Kursk region continues as we expected

Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Photo: Office of the President

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the operation of the Defense Forces in the Kursk region is continuing exactly as planned.

He said this in an evening address on August 17.

«Today, General Syrskyi also reported on the continuation of our movement in the Kursk region. The operation is proceeding exactly as we expected. The bravery of Ukrainians does great things. Now we are strengthening our positions. The bridgehead of our presence is getting stronger. I want to thank every soldier who makes this possible: all soldiers, sergeants and commanders,» the president said.

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Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked each unit that replenishes the exchange fund at the expense of new Russian prisoners of war. He also emphasized that this week there was a reboot of our negotiating team and the entire exchange infrastructure. Joined on an equal footing with the Directorate of the SSU, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Armed Forces, and the Foreign Intelligence Service. The presence of the Ombudsperson's infrastructure in the regions of Ukraine will also be strengthened, so that transparent and high-quality work with relatives of prisoners, with public activists who are ready to help, takes place everywhere.

«And this is our indisputable priority — one of the ten points of the Peace Formula. And we will definitely do everything so that Ukraine gets a just peace. All our people, all our communities,» he added.

Earlier, Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that the Ukrainian military strengthened its position in the Kursk region and expanded the stabilization area.

Operation in the Kursk region

The Russian side claims that on August 6, the Ukrainian military tried to break through the border and gain a foothold in the Sudzhanskyi and Korenievskyi districts of the Kursk region.

On August 12, the governor of the region, Oleksii Smirnov, reported to the leader of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, that 28 settlements in the Kursk region «are under the control of the enemy.»

On the evening of August 12, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the operation in the Kursk region. According to him, this was necessary to ensure the security of the border areas from the Russian military.

The spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Heorhii Tyhyi, said that Ukraine is not interested in taking the territories of the Kursk region of Russia. Currently, Ukraine is protecting its citizens, who are being fired upon by the Russian military from the territory of this region.

We will remind that in the Kursk region, on August 14, special forces of the Security Service of Ukraine captured 102 soldiers of the 488th Guards Motorized Rifle Regiment of the Armed Forces of Russia and the special unit «Akhmat». It is noted that this is the largest capture of the enemy, which was carried out at one time.

Also, according to local media reports, six Russian soldiers were captured by the Armed Forces, and the Russian Telegram channel «VChK-OGPU» claims that the Chechen special forces «Akhmat» stationed on the border have left their positions, and 15 soldiers were injured.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Oleksandr Syrskyi reported that as of August 14, the Defense Forces of Ukraine destroyed the enemy in the city of Sudzha, Kursk Region of the Russian Federation. More than 100 Russian soldiers were taken prisoner, the defensive operation continues.

On August 15, representatives of Ukraine and the Russian Federation begin negotiations on the exchange of prisoners of war in the Kursk region.

The command of the airborne assault troops of the Armed Forces of Ukraine showed footage of the first hours of the offensive operation of the Ukrainian military in the Kursk region on August 6 this year.