By Emmanuel Nduka
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday said Ukraine now controls 74 settlements in Russia’s Kursk border region.
Heritage Times HT reports that the governor of the Kursk region, where Ukraine is mounting a week-long incursion, previously said on Monday that Ukraine controls 28 settlements.
“There are 74 settlements under the control of Ukraine,” Zelensky said in his evening address on Tuesday.
The president said that “despite difficult, intense fighting, the advance of our forces in the Kursk region continues.”
President Zelensky said Ukraine has been able to “replenish” its numbers of Russian POWs to exchange for its own troops and “preparation for our next steps continues”.
He posted footage showing him holding a video call with military chief Oleksandr Syrsky.
“As of today, our troops have advanced in some areas by 1 to 3 kilometres,” Syrsky told him.
In the last day, Ukraine has taken control of “40 square kilometres of territory”, Syrsky adds, after saying Monday that the troops hold around 1,000 square kilometres of Russian territory.
“Fighting is ongoing along the entire front line. The situation is under control despite the high intensity of fighting,” Syrsky added.
Heritage Times HT reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin may have been weakened by Zelensky’s renewed onslaught with massive weaponry and logistics support from allies. State Media had also reported that Putin may have exhausted his reserve troops, and is now leveraging on volunteer fighters from the African continent and other regions.
