President Volodymyr Zelenskyy heard a report from Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyy on the operation in Kursk Region. He announced this following a meeting of the Supreme C’n’C staff meeting. For his part, Syrskyy said that we have about 1,000 square kilometres under our control in the Kursk Region. He said that Ukraine is conducting an offensive operation there.
This is the first official recognition of the operation in the Kursk Region. Zelenskyy said he had instructed the Interior Minister, other government officials and the Security Service of Ukraine to "prepare a humanitarian plan for the area of the operation".
"The most important thing was the report of the Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyy on our defensive actions at the front and the operation in the Kursk Region. We are grateful to all soldiers and commanders for their resilience and decisive actions," the President said.
In addition, the meeting heard a report on the economy. The President informed about the increase in the share of Ukrainian production in public procurement. "The government is preparing long-term, predictable contracts for our enterprises for 5-10 years.
Zelenskyy instructed the Coordination Headquarters, the DIU, the SBU and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to prepare a clear and transparent strategy for the return of Ukrainians from Russian captivity. He instructed the Ministry of Defence and diplomats to submit a list of necessary actions on our part to obtain permission from our partners to use long-range weapons to defend our territory.
Events in the Kursk Region
- On 6 August, Russia started talking about a border breach in the Kursk Region. At first, it claimed that the attempt had failed and that its FSB had contained the operation, but even its pro-war bloggers reported a loss of control. The head of the Centre for Countering Disinformation, Andriy Kovalenko, said that day that Russian claims of border control in the Kursk Region were false. This was the first and only comment by a Ukrainian official on the subject.
- On 7 August, the Russians reported that the fighting continued. Evacuations were announced from some settlements. No one denied the fact that the border had been breached, including Vladimir Putin, who urgently called a meeting of the government and, according to Russian media, the security council.
- Comments on the Kursk Region, albeit rather circumspect, began to be made by Mykhaylo Podolyak, an adviser to the head of the Presidential Office.
- Meanwhile, the US and the EU were very cautious in their comments. Washington said it wanted to clarify with Ukraine what was happening. The Americans also said that we should not forget that Russia attacked Ukrainians from the Kursk Region, and that Ukraine has the right to defend itself. The right to defence was also reiterated in the European Union.
- On 8 August, the Ukrainian president said in an address that Russia had brought war to our land, and it should feel what it had done. The Pentagon said that it did not consider the events in the Kursk Region to be an escalation, and that Ukraine was doing what it needed to do to win on the battlefield.
- According to Deep State, Russia lost several settlements on the first day of the operation.
- According to the SBU, Russia is preparing new PSYOP accusing Ukraine of war crimes in the Kursk Region.