Situation increasingly precarious

Kursk: Ukrainian supply routes blocked

Russian artillery in the Kursk region

(Bild: AP)

The situation for the Ukrainian troops, who continue to occupy parts of the Russian border region of Kursk, is becoming increasingly precarious. According to media reports, all of the Ukrainians' supply routes are blocked.

After Russian units advanced near Sumy, they now control all the supply routes there, as Ukrainian television reported on Sunday. According to the Ukrainian soldiers, the Russian military is using drones there whose frequencies could not be jammed. As these drones patrol the supply routes day and night and are on the "free hunt", supplying the frontline troops is becoming increasingly difficult. 

1000 soldiers threatened with encirclement
According to media reports, the situation of the Ukrainian soldiers fighting near Kursk has deteriorated considerably in recent days. According to the Unian agency, around 1000 Ukrainian soldiers are threatened with encirclement.

Russians are advancing from many directions
According to military bloggers, the Russian armed forces are advancing on the so-called "cauldron" in Kursk from at least seven directions. Blogger Yuri Podolyaka writes that he is finding it difficult to keep up with events because the Russian advance is proceeding so quickly. Russian forces recaptured three more settlements in Kursk on Sunday after special forces sneaked kilometers through a gas pipeline near the town of Sudzha in a surprise attack on Ukrainian forces.

Ukraine wants to use the land in Kursk as a bargaining chip to get its own territories back in negotiations. The Kremlin categorically rejects negotiations over Kursk and has announced that it will expel or kill all Ukrainian soldiers who have crossed into Russia. The Russian military itself occupies around a fifth of Ukrainian territory.