Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said today that his country controls 74 settlements on Russian territory where Ukrainian forces launched a surprise offensive last week , which forced tens of thousands of civilians to flee, France Press reported, BTA reported.
"Despite difficult and intense fighting, the progress of our forces in the Kursk region continues. There are 74 settlements under the control of Ukraine," Zelensky said in "Telegram". Zelensky added that Ukrainian forces have advanced in the last 24 hours by 1-3 kilometers, adds Reuters.
In a video conference meeting with Zelensky, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, General Oleksandr Syrsky, told him that Ukrainian forces had captured 40 square kilometers of new territory in the last 24 hours.
Ukraine announced today that its biggest cross-border attack to date since the conflict with Russia began in February 2022 would prevent Russia from sending more troops to the front in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region and disrupt the enemy's military organization. Kiev also said it has no interest in occupying Russian territory, Reuters reported.
Ukraine distracted Russia by throwing thousands of troops into Russia's western Kursk region last week in a surprise operation that saw Kiev say its forces seized 1,000 square kilometers of land - Ukraine's biggest territorial gain since 2022.
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"Unlike Russia, Ukraine does not need foreign ownership. Ukraine does not want to annex territory from the Kursk region, but wants to protect the lives of its people," said the spokesman of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Giorgi Tihi at a press conference today.