Putin's encirclement claims dismissed by Western intel
Western intelligence agencies deny claims of Ukrainian soldiers being encircled in the Kursk region. The alleged difficult situation of Ukrainian troops was previously mentioned by Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.
What do you need to know?
- Western intelligence agencies, including the CIA, have informed the White House that Ukrainian soldiers are not surrounded in the Kursk region.
- Vladimir Putin announced that Ukrainian forces were cut off, which experts deemed disinformation.
- Donald Trump repeated Putin's claims, even though U.S. intelligence denied this information.
What are the intelligence findings?
According to information provided by Reuters, Western intelligence agencies, including the CIA, informed the White House that Ukrainian soldiers are not surrounded by Russian forces in the Kursk region.
Findings from American and European intelligence services indicate that Ukrainian soldiers indeed had to withdraw from their positions in the Kursk region under pressure from Russian forces recently, but they have not been encircled.
Nevertheless, Trump continued to cite the alleged encirclement - as recently as Tuesday following a conversation with Putin.
The situation in the Kursk region. Putin’s propaganda
Vladimir Putin announced on March 13 that Ukrainian forces were cut off and would have to surrender or die.
Experts assess these claims as an attempt at disinformation aimed at gaining an advantage in negotiations. Putin wants to show that Russia is winning the war, which is meant to discourage further resistance.
"This is likely part of Putin's effort to make the point that they are winning the war and that resistance is useless and that it is inevitable that Russia's greater strength will bring victory. That resonates with Trump," evaluated retired U.S. Marine Corps Colonel Mark Cancian, currently an advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Trump repeats after Putin
Despite information from intelligence, Donald Trump repeated Putin's claims about the encirclement of Ukrainian soldiers. On Monday, he spoke about this in a speech and on Tuesday during an interview with Fox News.
The U.S. National Security Council did not directly comment on these findings but pointed to the White House communication following Trump's conversation with Volodymyr Zelensky.
Officials in Kyiv, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, have been refuting claims of encirclement in the Kursk region from the beginning. Zelensky stated that Putin is lying about the battlefield situation.
