Ukrainian Troops Describe Struggles in Chaotic Kursk Fight

Communication delays, difficulty of counterattacking Russian forces raise doubts about the mission
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Dec 28, 2024 2:00 PM CST
Ukrainian Troops Describe Struggles in Chaotic Kursk Fight
In this image from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on Oct. 17, a Russian soldier fires a gun toward a Ukrainian position in the Russian-Ukrainian border area in the Kursk region.   (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service photo via AP, File)

Five months after their shock offensive into Russia, Ukrainian troops are bloodied and demoralized by the rising risk of defeat in Kursk, a region some want to hold at all costs while others question the value of having gone in at all. Battles are so intense that some Ukrainian commanders can't evacuate the dead. Communication lags, poorly timed tactics have cost lives, and troops have little way to counterattack, seven front-line soldiers and commanders told the AP. "We have, as they say, hit a hornet's nest," said a major in the 95th Airborne Assault Brigade. "We have stirred up another hot spot."

  • The initial raid: Army chief Oleksandr Syrskyi has said Ukraine launched the operation because officials thought Russia was about to launch a new attack on northeast Ukraine. It began on Aug. 5 with an order to leave Ukraine's Sumy region for what was to be a nine-day raid to stun the enemy. It became an occupation that Ukrainians welcomed as their smaller country gained leverage and embarrassed Russian President Vladimir Putin. Gathering his men, one company commander said, "We're making history; the whole world will know about us because this hasn't been done since World War II." Privately, he was less certain. "It seemed crazy," he said. "I didn't understand why."
  • The counterattack: Since being caught unaware by the lightning Ukrainian incursion, Russia has amassed more than 50,000 troops in the region, including some from North Korea. Precise numbers are hard to obtain, but Moscow's counterattack has killed and wounded thousands, and the overstretched Ukrainians have lost more than 40% of the 380 square miles of Kursk they seized in August. The full-scale invasion three years ago left Russia holding a fifth of Ukraine, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has hinted that he hopes controlling Kursk will help force Moscow to negotiate an end to the war. But five Ukrainian and Western officials in Kyiv said that they fear gambling on Kursk will weaken the whole 621-mile front line and that Ukraine is losing precious ground in the east.
  • The order to march on: Shocked by the initial success, Ukrainian ordered troops to advance beyond the original mission to the town of Korenevo, 16 miles into Russia. That was one of the first places where Russian troops counterattacked. By early November the Russians were regaining territory rapidly. Once in awe of what they accomplished, troops' opinions are shifting as they come to terms with losses. The company commander said half of his troops were dead or wounded.

  • The problems: Some front-line commanders said conditions are tough, morale is low, and troops are questioning command decisions, even the purpose of occupying Kursk. Another commander said some orders his men have received don't reflect reality because of delays in communication with higher-ups. "They don't understand where our side is, where the enemy is, what's under our control and what isn't," he said, adding, "so we act at our own discretion." One platoon commander said his requests to change his unit's defensive position because he knows his men can't hold the line have been repeatedly turned down. "Those people who stand until the end are ending up MIA," he said.
  • The military chiefs' response: Ukraine's General Staff told the AP in a written response that Ukrainian combat units are inflicting losses to Russian personnel and military equipment on a daily basis. They're provided with "everything necessary" to carry out combat duties, it said, adding that "troops are managed in accordance to situational awareness and operational information."
(More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X