"The task is to finally defeat the enemy in the Kursk region as soon as possible"
Russian troops have liberated more than 86% of the territory of the Kursk region previously occupied by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces and First Deputy Defense Minister, reported this to Vladimir Putin on March 12. On this day, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief visited one of the control points of the Kursk group of troops: he instructed to finally defeat the enemy as soon as possible and completely liberate the territory of the region. The head of the General Staff has already announced the failure of the Kiev regime's plans: now the AFU grouping in the Kursk region is surrounded and isolated. Experts believe that thanks to Operation Potok with a passage through a pipe, the Russian Armed Forces managed to turn the tide of the battle in the Kursk region. Kiev's readiness for a truce coincided with the defeat of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in this area. How the Russian negotiating positions are changing now is in the Izvestia article.
Putin arrives in Kursk region
On March 12, instead of participating in a planned working meeting with the government, Vladimir Putin personally arrived at one of the control points of the Kursk group of troops. This is the first public visit by the head of state to the Kursk region since the Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked the region on August 6. Under the chairmanship of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, who attended the meeting in military uniform, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov made a report on the situation. He announced the failure of Kiev's plans: the Russian Armed Forces have already liberated 86% of the territory of the Kursk region occupied by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which is 1.1 thousand square kilometers. Moreover, in the last five days alone, the troops have liberated 24 settlements and 259 square kilometers.
— The Kiev regime aimed to create a so-called strategic foothold in the Kursk region for later use as a bargaining chip in possible negotiations with Russia. In addition, the Ukrainian leadership tried to use the raid on the territory of the Kursk region to stop the advance of our troops and pull our troops away from Donbass. But these plans of the enemy have completely failed," Valery Gerasimov said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Valery Gerasimov at one of the control points of the Kursk group of its
He stressed that the Ukrainian Armed Forces lost more than 67,000 people and over 7,000 pieces of equipment during the fighting. The enemy suffered heavy losses during the liberation of Malaya Lokna by the Russian military. Now the AFU group is surrounded, and its systematic destruction is underway.
— The Ukrainian military, seeing the futility of further resistance, began to actively surrender. 430 militants have been captured,— Valery Gerasimov said.
"Our task in the near future, as soon as possible, is to finally defeat the enemy entrenched in the territory of the Kursk region and still conducting military operations here, completely liberate the territory of the Kursk region, and restore the situation along the state border line," Vladimir Putin addressed the participants of the meeting.
Operation Stream — what is known about it
Yesterday it became known about the release of Suji. To break through the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Russian military used the pipe of the main gas pipeline, which used to supply fuel to Europe. According to Valery Gerasimov, more than 600 military personnel participated in Operation Potok through the pipe in Sudzha, especially the Veterans, Akhmat, the 11th Brigade and the 30th Regiment distinguished themselves. He noted that they covered a distance of about 15 km and went deep into the combat formations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. These actions came as a surprise to the enemy and contributed to the collapse of its defense, and at the same time, the development of our offensive in the Kursk region, he said.
The village of Russkaya Konopelka in the Sudzhansky district of the Kursk region, liberated by the Russian Armed Forces
— Currently, the operation to destroy the enemy on Kursk continues. The grouping of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is isolated, and its systematic destruction is underway. In some areas, Russian units crossed the state border and entered the Sumy region, where they continue to destroy enemy reserves and expand the security zone," Valery Gerasimov reported.
The task of defeating the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region and reaching the state border will be completed as soon as possible, the head of the Russian General Staff assured. Now, in the Kursk region, the Russian Armed Forces have managed to turn the tide in our favor, military expert Viktor Litovkin emphasized to Izvestia.
— More than 80% of the previously occupied territory has been liberated, there are few left. In the next week, I think everything will be finished. We will reach the state border. It will be more interesting later. Some of our amphibious units have already entered the Sumy region," the expert said. — This is a feat of our guys. Especially those who entered the enemy's rear through a gas pipe. These events will give our troops confidence. The enemy, even though he claims to be carrying out a maneuver, will lose morale. It is clear to everyone that they are simply being thrown out of our country. We have an advantage here too.
At the same time, the analyst is confident that the Kursk operation will strengthen Russian positions before possible diplomatic negotiations.
Putin said that prisoners should be treated humanely.
After listening to the report, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief thanked each unit that liberated the Kursk region: he listed in detail the merits of more than 10 divisions and formations. The President said that every day, morning and evening, he contacts Russian fighters fighting in the region.
— Please convey my gratitude to all the staff for what has been done recently. I really hope that all the combat tasks facing our units will certainly be fulfilled and the territory of the Kursk region will be completely liberated from the enemy in the near future," the president said.
He stated that Russia will treat the military of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which are located in the territory of the Kursk region, commit crimes against the civilian population here and counteract our Armed Forces as terrorists. However, the President stressed that all prisoners of war should be treated humanely. The Head of State also touched upon foreign mercenaries.
"Foreign mercenaries are not subject to the 1949 Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War," he stressed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin at one of the control points of the Kursk group
Vladimir Putin also instructed to think about creating a security zone along the state border. It is noteworthy that Kiev's readiness for a truce coincided with a similar defeat of the Ukrainian Armed Forces formations in the Kursk direction.
— We can expect that the main phase of the Battle of Kursk will end in about a week and the Russian troops will continue advancing, but already on the territory of Sumy region. That is why Ukraine agreed to a cease-fire, which should allow the line of contact to be frozen until communication with American intelligence is fully restored and weapons stocks are replenished. Now it looks like a request to Russia to voluntarily stop the offensive and wait for a more appropriate moment for the Ukrainian Armed Forces," said Tigran Meloyan, an analyst at the HSE Center for Mediterranean Studies.
According to the expert, if Russia agrees to a truce, Ukraine will literally get 30 days to rest: it will have the opportunity to rearm, replenish personnel, replenish ammunition and UAV stocks, and also have time to plan and prepare new operations against the Russian Federation, the expert believes.
Russian military personnel near the burnt-out armored car of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
— It is also quite obvious that at this stage the truce leads to a freezing of the conflict along the front line, when part of the regions that officially became part of Russia within their administrative borders remains held by Ukrainian military personnel. In particular, there are no clear guarantees that the "new territories" can in principle be transferred to Moscow within the framework of the negotiation track (i.e. without the use of force). Moreover, the liberation of the Kursk region is still on the agenda. And until it is completely repelled, any steps towards a truce look premature," Tigran Meloyan said.
With today's Ukrainian leadership, Moscow cannot be completely sure that tomorrow, under conditions more favorable for Kiev and the West, fighting will not resume in some areas. As a good example, the United States recently restored the supply of weapons to Ukraine and the transfer of intelligence, which once again confirmed its involvement in a proxy war against Russia, but led by the new American administration, which, despite all its peace initiatives, continues to fuel this conflict one way or another.
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