Ukrainian forces thwart Russian plans in Kharkiv and Sumy offensive
Russia wanted to take Kharkiv and Sumy, said Volodymyr Zelensky in an interview with Indian media. He added that Ukraine stopped the Russians thanks to an offensive in the Kursk region.
The Ukrainian president, speaking about the offensive in the Kursk region, emphasised that it was not Ukraine that invaded Russia. "The Russian Federation invaded our territory 10 years ago. It occupied and killed people," he reminded.
Zelensky said that the Russians were preparing an offensive in the Kharkiv region to capture the city of Kharkiv. "And today, exactly 1.5 million people live there. Because the Russians entered the Kharkiv region, residents from the destroyed villages had to move to the city. Russia wanted to occupy this overcrowded city," recounted the president in an interview with journalists.
He revealed that the Russians also planned to capture the city of Sumy. According to the information provided by Zelensky, the offensive was supposed to be carried out through the Kursk region. Thanks to the Ukrainian offensive on this Russian region, it was possible to thwart the plans of the Russian army. "Everything was already prepared. The difference is that we did it preemptively so they would not capture our city," he explained.
"Kursk operation". Ukrainians captured about 260 square miles of Russian territory
Since 6 August - since the start of the "Kursk operation" - Ukrainian forces have captured about 260 square miles (700 square kilometres) of Russian territory and about 100 localities.
The Ukrainian army entered without major problems because the Russians did not fully reckon with the possibility of an invasion. Even the spring raids conducted in this area by those fighting on the side of Ukraine: the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK), the Siberia Battalion, and the "Freedom of Russia" Legion were not a warning signal for the Kremlin.
Source: Unian
