Breakthrough in Kursk region allows Ukraine to seize battlefield initiative in one area - ISW

Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region allowed the Ukrainian troops to at least temporarily seize the initiative on the battlefield on one section of the front and contest Russia’s theater-wide initiative, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank, Report informs referring to Ukrinform.

As analysts note, Russia has retained the initiative on the front since November 2023, determining the location, time, scale, and requirements of fighting in Ukraine and forced Ukraine to expend materiel and manpower in reactive defensive operations.

However, the Ukrainian operation in Kursk region forced the Russian military command to react and redeploy forces and assets to the sector where Ukrainian troops have launched attacks. Russian forces, however, were notably not conducting active operations in Kursk region, ISW notes.