Our troops will soon retake all of Kursk from Ukraine – Russia

Russia on Thursday expressed optimism that its troops would soon complete the task of clearing out Ukrainian forces from the Kursk region where they have held a pocket of territory for more than seven months.

The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces were pounding remaining Ukrainian positions after capturing three more settlements, including the town of Sudzha, which is located near the border with Ukraine and lies on a road that Kyiv had used to resupply its forces.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s top army commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said on Wednesday that Kyiv’s troops would keep operating in Kursk as long as needed and that fighting continued in and around Sudzha.

Ukraine sprang one of the biggest shocks of the war on August 6 last year by storming across the border and grabbing a chunk of territory that Kyiv hoped to use as a bargaining chip in peace talks.

It was gathered that Russia’s forces, supported by troops from its ally North Korea, have gradually clawed back the lost ground, mounting what appears to be a final push just as the U.S. tries to get Moscow to agree to a proposed ceasefire in the three-year war.

According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Russian troops would take as long as necessary to save the maximum number of lives of our military and civilians.