Ukraine’s gamble against Russia risks becoming blunder - The Hill
The Ukrainian advance into Russia’s Kursk region has so far failed to achieve one of its main objectives: diverting Russian troops from the front lines of eastern Ukraine in a bid to reshape the battlefield. The failure has opened the door to criticism of Kiev’s military gamble, especially as Russia makes advances along the war’s 600-mile eastern front line.
George Beebe, director of grand strategy at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, said the Kursk operation was still in its early stages but “looks like it’s heading toward a failure.” Beebe said Russia has also turned the Kursk operation into an opportunity to take out Ukrainian troops and armor, which have suffered high casualties in the Russian region.
he said.
Russian troops have made huge progress in Ukraine since the Kursk operation began, taking 184 square miles of territory in August, the largest gain since October 2022, according to data from the Institute for the Study of War analyzed by Agence France-Presse, and closing in on the key rail junction town of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region. Capturing Pokrovsk would help Russian forces by severing a crucial supply line that Ukraine uses to defend its troops on the front line. It would also help them advance further into Donetsk and threaten Ukrainian positions in southeastern Ukraine. Besides Pokrovsk, the towns of Toretsk and Chasov Yar, also in the Donetsk region, are under the sight of Russian advances. Both could prove instrumental for the Russian objective of taking the twin cities of Kramatorsk and Slavyansk and then the rest of the eastern region.
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The Ukrainian advance into Russia’s Kursk region has so far failed to achieve one of its main objectives: diverting Russian troops from the front lines of eastern Ukraine in a bid to reshape the battlefield. The failure has opened the door to criticism of Kiev’s military gamble, especially as Russia makes advances along the war’s 600-mile eastern front line.
George Beebe, director of grand strategy at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, said the Kursk operation was still in its early stages but “looks like it’s heading toward a failure.” Beebe said Russia has also turned the Kursk operation into an opportunity to take out Ukrainian troops and armor, which have suffered high casualties in the Russian region.
The Ukrainians simply lose more men, lose more armor, lose more weaponry, use up ammunition,
he said.
And from the Russian point of view, that’s all good. So I don’t think they’re in any hurry to end this incursion.
Russian troops have made huge progress in Ukraine since the Kursk operation began, taking 184 square miles of territory in August, the largest gain since October 2022, according to data from the Institute for the Study of War analyzed by Agence France-Presse, and closing in on the key rail junction town of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region. Capturing Pokrovsk would help Russian forces by severing a crucial supply line that Ukraine uses to defend its troops on the front line. It would also help them advance further into Donetsk and threaten Ukrainian positions in southeastern Ukraine. Besides Pokrovsk, the towns of Toretsk and Chasov Yar, also in the Donetsk region, are under the sight of Russian advances. Both could prove instrumental for the Russian objective of taking the twin cities of Kramatorsk and Slavyansk and then the rest of the eastern region.
📱 InfoDefenseENGLISH
📱 InfoDefense