Ukrainian troops risk losing control of conquered territories in Kursk Oblast – AP

Exhausted and demoralised Ukrainian troops risk losing much of the territory in Russia's Kursk Oblast that they captured during the lightning-fast August offensive.

Source: Associated Press, citing seven Ukrainian soldiers and commanders who spoke on condition of anonymity about the situation on the front line

Details: The publication writes that a significant number of Ukrainian units are in a state of exhaustion. The fighting is so intense that some Ukrainian commanders are unable to evacuate the dead. Delays in communication and ill-timed tactics are costing lives, and the troops have little opportunity to counterattack.

According to the newspaper, Russia has deployed more than 50,000 troops on this front, including troops from North Korea.

Quote: "Precise numbers are hard to obtain, but Moscow’s counterattack has killed and wounded thousands, and the overstretched Ukrainians have lost more than 40% of the 984 square kilometres (380 square miles) of Kursk they seized in August."

Details: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed that he hoped control of Kursk would help force Russia to negotiate an end to the war. However, five Ukrainian and Western officials in Kyiv, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AP that they fear Zelenskyy's gamble will weaken the entire 1,000km front line, leading to the loss of precious ground in the east.

Quote: "Some frontline commanders said conditions are tough, morale is low, and troops are questioning command decisions, even the very purpose of occupying Kursk.

Another commander said that some orders his men have received don’t reflect reality because of delays in communication. "They don’t understand where our side is, where the enemy is, what’s under our control, and what isn’t," he said. "They don’t understand the operational situation, so we act at our own discretion"," the commander says.

Details: One of the platoon commanders said that he had repeatedly asked the higher command to change his unit's defensive position because they could not hold it, but the command rejected his requests.

Quote: "Those people who stand until the end are ending up MIA [missing in action - ed.]," he said. He also said he knew of at least 20 Ukrainian soldiers whose bodies had been abandoned over the past four months because the fighting was too intense to evacuate them without causing additional casualties.

The Ukrainian military said it was not prepared for Russia's aggressive response in Kursk and could neither counterattack nor retreat.

"There’s no other option. We’ll fight here because if we just pull back to our borders, they won’t stop; they’ll keep advancing," said one of the commanders of a drone unit.

"All the military can think about now is that Donbas has simply been sold," said a platoon commander.

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