Volodymyr Zelensky hailed Ukraine’s capture of 350 sq km of Russian territory on Thursday, saying his forces had turned the table on the Kremlin and brought “war” to its land.
Kyiv sent in reinforcements, began mining the main roads Moscow could counter-attack down and bolstered air defences to solidify its surprise gains after three days of brutal fighting.
Carefully coordinated electronic warfare jamming by Ukrainian forces left Russian units unable to communicate, Russian military bloggers said.
Some compared the turmoil to the 2022 Ukrainian rout of Russian forces in occupied Kharkiv, when Kyiv’s troops advanced more than 50 miles in a single armoured thrust.
Russian sources warned the “scale of the crisis is expanding” as Ukrainian units moved at high speed, bypassing Russian fortifications and attempting to expand the newly-formed bridgehead.
“Ukrainians know how to achieve their goals. And achieving the goals at war was not our choice,” Mr Zelensky said in his nightly address.
“Russia brought the war to our land, and it should feel what it has done.”
Presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said the cross-border incursion into Russia would strengthen Kyiv’s hand in any future peace talks with Moscow.
“When you increase Russian losses... when you ramp up their war costs, such as destroyed military equipment, lost territory, lost people, will this affect how they perceive their war? Without a doubt,” he said.
Ukraine sprung the surprise assault into Kursk early on Tuesday morning, with what Russia described as a 400-strong “reconnaissance and sabotage” group.
Battlefield footage showed Russian strikes on columns of armoured vehicles, disabled Russian tanks, destroyed helicopters, damaged buildings and dead soldiers.
Russian fighter jets were seen swooping low over areas and video showed dozens of Russian prisoners of war being marched away under armed guard by Ukrainian forces.
Moscow’s defence ministry even edited a social media post that claimed it had defeated the Ukrainian assault, which it said had beaten a hasty retreat after coming under Russian fire.
Russian military bloggers with links to the Kremlin leapt on the post, and accused the ministry of trying to cover-up the extent of the unfolding crisis.
Valery Gerasimov, Russia’s top general, claimed that Ukraine had sent about 1,000 troops into the fight.
The Russian defence ministry said Kyiv had lost about 600 troops and almost 100 armoured vehicles in the battles.
But by Thursday, Ukraine had committed a much larger force of at least four elite brigades equipped with American Stryker and German Marder fighting vehicles seen on Russian soil.
Russia called up its own special forces as it attempted to stage a fight-back against the shock strike before Ukrainian troops had the chance to dig in.
Videos circulated by Russian social media accounts purported to show Wagner Group troops confirming they had been sent to secure andstabilise the Kursk region.
“The Russians are making very stupid errors and it’s all down to their corrupt top-down management which prioritises good news over the truth, a Ukrainian intelligence source told The Economist.
“Russia was trying to prepare a solid position but now they are f----- because they can’t protect their own terrain,” the source added, referring to Russia’s gains in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas regions.
Ukrainian forces captured the Kursk town of Sudzha, a key Russian logistics hub six miles from the border, and Korenevo, almost 10 miles inside of Russia.
The Institute for the Study of War, a US think tank, said it had geolocated footage of Ukrainian armoured vehicles advancing on the 38K-030 Sudzha-Korenovo highway.
Pro-Kremlin military bloggers said Ukraine was also trying to skirt around those settlements to make gains deeper inside Russian territory.
Local residents were evacuating the town of Lgov, more than 10 miles north of Korenovo, video circulated on social media showed.
Vladimir Putin promised one-off payments of 10,000 rubles (£90) to Kursk residents to assist with evacuations, after talks with local officials.
Rybar, an authoritative Russian military blogger, wrote on Telegram: “Ukrainian formations have already begun digging in at the achieved lines, introducing a second echelon.
The capture of Sudzha has become an inspiring factor for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which they are now trying to use to offset their losses and demonstrate that the game is worth the candle.
“The biggest problem in organising defence in the Kursk tactical direction remains the disunity of units and the lack of the required number of forces, which are now allegedly being withdrawn from other directions.
