Russian military chief Valery Gerasimov announced on Saturday that Moscow’s forces have successfully expelled Ukrainian troops from nearly the entire western Kursk region of Russia.
Gerasimov informed President Vladimir Putin during a televised meeting that “the majority of the area affected by the invasion has now been cleared,” specifying that this amounts to 1,260 square kilometers, or 99.5% of the region.
Since August of the previous year, Russia has been working to remove Ukrainian forces from Kursk following a surprise incursion by Kyiv’s troops, which caught Putin off guard. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had anticipated that this move would provide leverage in any future negotiations to resolve the conflict.
Gerasimov provided an update on the situation on the battlefield to Putin, a report that Reuters has not been able to independently verify, just before the Kremlin leader declared a unilateral ceasefire for Easter in Ukraine.
He noted that Ukraine now controls only 3 square kilometers of Kursk, specifically around the villages of Oleshnya and Gornal, which are located near the border. The Defence Ministry confirmed on Saturday that Russia had regained control of Oleshnya from Ukrainian forces.
In recent weeks, Russia has reclaimed a significant portion of territory within Kursk and has begun advancing into the neighboring Sumy region of Ukraine. Concurrently, Ukraine has launched a renewed offensive into Russia’s Belgorod region, situated south of Kursk. Gerasimov assured Putin that Russian troops were effectively countering Ukrainian assaults in that area.
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