Ukraine loses control of over 40% of Kursk region in Russian counteroffensive

Ukraine has lost more than 40% of the territory it seized initially in a surprise attack in Russia’s Kursk region in August, a senior Ukrainian military source told Reuters.

Russia had deployed some 59,000 troops to the Kursk region since Kyiv’s forces swept in and advanced swiftly, catching Moscow unprepared 2-1/2 years into its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, said the source, who is on Ukraine’s General Staff.

”At most, we controlled about 1,376 square kilometres (531 square miles), now of course this territory is smaller. The enemy is increasing its counterattacks,” Reuters cited source as saying.

”Now we control approximately 800 square kilometres (309 square miles). We will hold this territory for as long as is militarily appropriate.”

The Kursk offensive was the first ground invasion of Russia by a foreign power since World War Two and caught Moscow unprepared.

With the thrust into Kursk, Kyiv aimed to stem Russian attacks in eastern and northeastern Ukraine, force Russia to pull back forces gradually advancing in the east and give Kyiv extra leverage in any future peace negotiations.

But Russian forces are still steadily advancing in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region.

For the first time, the Kremlin fired a new intermediate-range ballistic missile at Ukraine in response to Kyiv’s use of American and British missiles.

In a televised address to the country, the Russian president had warned that U.S. air defense systems would be powerless to stop the new missile, which he said flies at 10 times the speed of sound and which he called the Oreshnik — Russian for hazelnut tree — based on Russia’s RS-26 Rubezh intercontinental ballistic missile, which can carry nuclear warheads.

Putin also said it could be used to attack any Ukrainian ally whose missiles are used to attack Russia. Moscow gave Washington a 30-minute warning of the attack, which struck a weapons factory in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro.

Ukraine’s armed forces chief said on Nov. 11 that its beleaguered forces were not just battling crack Russian reinforcements in Kursk but also scrambling to reinforce two besieged fronts in eastern Ukraine and bracing for an infantry assault in the south.

With inputs from agencies.