Zelenskyy says that Ukrainian forces control 92 settlements in the Kursk region and that troops have captured the largest number of Russian prisoners in a single operation.
Ukraine controls over 1,250 square kilometres of Russia’s territory, including 92 settlements, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at a meeting on Monday with heads of the country’s foreign diplomatic mission.
Zelenskyy also said that Ukraine has captured the largest number of Russian prisoners in a single operation, and that the operation marks Ukraine’s biggest effort to free Ukrainians from Russian captivity. He acknowledged last week that the captured Russian prisoners could be part of a prisoner exchange.
“Our active defensive actions across the border as well as Putin’s inability to defend his territory from such defensive actions of ours are very telling. Our proactive, preventive defence is the most effective counter to Russian terror, causing significant difficulties for the aggressor state.” he added.
Russian authorities say more than 121,000 people have been evacuated from the Kursk region since the start of the incursion. 84 temporary accommodation centres have been opened to host those who have been displaced. Russian state television showed one such centre located in a sports facility.
Ukraine aims to create a “buffer zone”
On Sunday, Zelenskyy said the aim of the military incursion into Russia’s Kursk region was to create a “buffer zone” to prevent further attacks by Moscow across the border.
It was the first time he clearly stated the aim of the operation that began on 6 August.
He added that if Ukraine’s partners would lift restrictions on the use of long-range weapons on Russian territory, Ukraine “would not need to physically enter, particularly the Kursk region, to protect our Ukrainian citizens in the border communities and eliminate Russia’s potential for aggression.”