RT-Engels: 17-08-2024,
The incursion into Kursk Region was launched to distract Moscow’s forces from other parts of the front line, a government adviser has said
Kiev had been planning an attack on Russia like the one currently underway in Kursk Region long in advance, NBC has reported, citing an unnamed senior adviser to the Ukrainian government.
On August 6, Ukraine launched its largest attack on internationally recognized Russian territory since the outbreak of the conflict in February 2022. The advance into Kursk Region was swiftly halted by Russia’s military, but Ukrainian troops still hold a number of settlements in the border area.
According to the adviser, whose comments were shared by the broadcaster in an article on Friday, the idea of an incursion into Russia has been “on the table for more than a year” in Kiev.
The goal of the operation was to divert Russian attention from other parts of the front line, especially from Donbass, where Moscow’s forces have been steadily advancing since the start of the year, he said.
NBC described the attack on Kursk Region as a “high stakes gamble” by the Ukrainian authorities. The broadcaster reminded that this week, the Russian military announced the capture of three settlements from Kiev’s forces in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic, and approached the strategic town of Krasnoarmeysk (called Pokrovsk by the Ukrainians) where the evacuation of the population has been announced.
“The question now is how long Ukraine wants to — and can — hold onto it [area under its control in Kursk Region] without sacrificing more of its own eastern heartland,” the article read.