In a significant development, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has publicly acknowledged that Ukrainian forces are actively engaged in a surprise offensive within Russia's Kursk region. This marks the first official confirmation of Ukraine's involvement in what has become the largest incursion into Russian territory since the war began.
Russian forces have been locked in intense battles for six consecutive days, as Kyiv's forces launched their most substantial operation on Russian soil, leaving parts of southwestern Russia vulnerable until reinforcements began to arrive. The scale of the Ukrainian offensive prompted Russia to implement a comprehensive security regime across three border regions on Saturday. Meanwhile, Belarus, a close ally of Moscow, responded by dispatching additional troops to its border with Ukraine, accusing Kyiv of violating its airspace.
In his nightly address, Zelenskiy disclosed that he had been in discussions with top Ukrainian commander Oleksandr Syrskyi regarding the operation, vowing to restore justice in response to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022.
"Today, I received several reports from Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi regarding the front lines and our actions to push the war onto the aggressor's territory," Zelenskiy said on Saturday, August 10. "Ukraine is proving that it can indeed restore justice and ensure the necessary pressure on the aggressor."
Russia's defense ministry reported on Sunday that it had destroyed 14 Ukrainian drones and four Tochka-U tactical ballistic missiles overnight in the Kursk region, along with 18 drones in other Russian regions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has condemned the Ukrainian attack as a "major provocation." While Russian military bloggers have noted that the situation has stabilized following the arrival of reinforcements, they also reported that Ukraine is rapidly building up its forces. The fighting has reportedly reached as deep as 20 kilometers (12 miles) into the Kursk region, raising questions among some observers about how Ukraine was able to penetrate so far into Russian territory.
In response to the ongoing conflict, Alexei Smirnov, acting governor of Kursk, has ordered local authorities to expedite the evacuation of civilians from high-risk areas. According to Russia's TASS state news agency, more than 76,000 people had been evacuated by Saturday.
Meanwhile, Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova has appealed to the United Nations, demanding condemnation of Ukraine's actions in Kursk. In a Telegram post, Moskalkova urged the U.N. Human Rights Commissioner to "take measures to prevent gross mass violations of human rights."
