kyiv, UKRAINE: Thousands of Ukrainian troops are taking part in an incursion into Russia's Kursk region that aims to “stretch” and “destabilise” Russia, a senior Ukrainian security official said. AFP.
“We are on an offensive. The goal is to expand the enemy's positions, inflict maximum losses and destabilize the situation in Russia, which is not able to protect its own border,” the official said Saturday evening, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Russian military earlier said Ukraine had deployed around 1,000 troops in the incursion that began on Tuesday, apparently taking the Kremlin by surprise as Ukrainian forces penetrated Russian defensive lines.
Asked if 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers were taking part in the assault, the official said: “There are many more.” […] “thousands”.
After days of official silence by Ukrainian authorities, President Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged the operation for the first time in his Saturday evening speech, saying kyiv was “pushing the war into the territory of the aggressor.”
