Ukraine lost more than 40% of the territory in Russia’s Kursk region that it quickly seized last summer in a surprise incursion, with Russian forces stepping up counterattacks to regain this ground, a spokesman said. we learned from a high-ranking Ukrainian military source.
The source, who is from Ukraine’s General Staff, said Russia had deployed some 59,000 troops to the Kursk region since Kyiv’s forces swept into Russian territory, catching Moscow off guard after two years and half full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“At maximum we controlled about 1,376 square kilometers (531 square miles), but that territory is of course smaller today. The enemy multiplies counterattacks, the source said. Today we control about 800 square kilometers. We will hold this territory for as long as it is militarily appropriate.”
The Kursk offensive was the first land invasion of Russia by a foreign power since World War II, shocking Moscow.
With the push on Kursk, Kyiv aimed to stem Russian attacks in eastern and northeastern Ukraine, force Russia to withdraw its forces that are gradually advancing westward, and give Kyiv a means of additional pressure in possible peace negotiations.
In 2024, a third of Russian missiles are North Korean munitions
Russia has stepped up its use of North Korean ballistic missiles in its strikes against Ukraine, according to Ukrainian military officials and public records analyzed by CNN.
These missiles highlight growing collaboration between Moscow and Pyongyang. North Korea’s role in supporting Russia is not limited to weapons: around 11,000 North Korean troops are believed to have been deployed in Russia’s Kursk region.
In 2024, Russia launched around 60 North Korean KN-23 missiles, accounting for nearly a third of the 194 ballistic missile strikes recorded by the Ukrainian Air Force. “ Since the spring, Russia has used significantly more ballistic missiles and attack drones to strike Ukraine, and fewer cruise missiles,” Yuriy Ihnat, acting chief of communications for the Ukrainian Air Force, told CNN.
Putin signs law canceling debts for soldiers in Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on Saturday that allows those who sign up to fight in Ukraine to forgive debts they fail to pay up to the equivalent of €92,000, according to the government.
The new legislation will allow everyone who signs a one-year contract to go to fight in Ukraine after December 1 to free themselves from debts, for which a collection order was issued before this date. It will also apply to their spouses.
The total amount of debts covered will be 10 million rubles, or around €92,000 at the current rate.
This measure, approved Tuesday by the Russian Parliament, is considered by experts to be a strong incentive, as Russia seeks volunteers for a conflict that has now lasted more than a thousand days.
Polish farmers block important border crossing with Ukraine
Polish farmers began blocking a major border crossing with Ukraine on Saturday to protest against government policy and denounce the European Union’s agreement with Mercosur countries.
At the Medyka border crossing (south-east), around thirty protesters are preventing truck traffic entering Poland. One truck per hour is allowed to leave Poland for Ukraine. The blockage does not apply to cars, buses, humanitarian and military transport.
The protesters criticize the government in particular for not keeping its promises on taxes for farmers. “We have authorization to protest until the end of the year, but we are waiting for the minister to come and discuss with us tomorrow. For the moment we do not want to expand our protest”declared to AFP Roman Kondrow, who heads the organization “The Duped Campaign”, present on site.
Presidential election in Romania: the far right could come to power
Romanians are called to the polls on Sunday for the first round of the presidential election, during which the leader of the far right, George Simion, could come to power. Outgoing President Klaus Iohannis, a loyal ally of Ukraine who has already served two terms, cannot run again.
Opinion polls predict a duel between Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, 56, leader since 2019 of the Social Democratic Party, the first political party in Romania, and the populist George Simion, 38, president of the Alliance for Unity of Romanians (AUR), which opposes any military aid to Ukraine.
“We take as a model the right-wing government formed in Italy”George Simion told the foreign press this week. Many challenges await the future president: a slowing European economy, a record public deficit within the Twenty-Seven, which should require fiscal measures, and the unknown of the NATO budget under the upcoming presidency of the American president. Donald Trump.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Romania has enabled the export of millions of tonnes of grain through its Black Sea port of Constanta and provided military aid to Kyiv, including donating of a Patriot air defense battery.
