Ukraine has claimed to have gained control of nearly 500 square miles of Russia’s Kursk region – as it conducted its first test of a domestically-produced ballistic missile.
Since their surprise incursion three weeks ago, the chief of Ukraine’s army said on Tuesday that the country’s troops have seized territory which is roughly the size of Los Angeles.
General Oleksandr Syrskyi also said that Ukraine has captured 594 Russian prisoners in its operation – claims that could not be independently confirmed.
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He said the Kursk incursion has led to Russian troops withdrawing from elsewhere, as they “attempt to create a ring of defence around our offensive group of troops and plan counteroffensive actions”.
The claims by Mr Syrskyi came on the same day that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told a forum in Kyiv that the country had conducted its first test of a domestically-produced ballistic missile.
“It may be too early to talk about it, but I want to share it with you,” the president said.
He congratulated the Ukrainian defence industry on the project but did not provide any further details on the weaponry.
Also at the forum – which was held to mark Ukraine’s independence day – Mr Zelenskyy said he’s going to present a plan to the US on how he intends to end the war with Russia.
The plan will include diplomatic and economic steps separate from the current Ukrainian invasion of Russia’s Kursk region, which he says has also been part of a strategy to get Moscow to start peace talks.
Talk of ending the war comes after at least 11 people have been killed by Russian drone and missile attacks in Ukraine since Monday.
Four people died in strikes overnight into Tuesday, two of whom were killed in a strike on a residential building in Kryvyi Rih, a mining and industrial city in Ukraine‘s south, according to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city’s military administration.
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At least seven people were killed during strikes on Monday, which one Ukrainian commander said was Russia’s “most massive attack” since the war started in February 2022.
Mr Zelenskyy said the most recent attacks included 81 drones, as well as cruise and ballistic missiles, and that 16 people were injured.
“We will undoubtedly respond to Russia for this and all other attacks. Crimes against humanity cannot go unpunished,” he wrote on X.
Having been on the front foot, Ukraine is under pressure again
This is the first major Russian air assault on Ukraine since Kyiv’s surprise cross border invasion.
The multiple drone attack has wrought yet more damage to Ukraine’s power infrastructure which had just been restored to some level of stable supply.
After months of stalemate, the war has shifted into a dynamic struggle to seize the initiative and maintain it.
Russia is hitting back with force after Ukraine’s surprise cross border invasion. Its forces have seized a large chunk of territory in southern Russia and claim to have made more advances over the weekend, seizing more villages.
For its part, Russia is also making advances in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine’s offensive does not seem to have lured many Russian forces from that front in the Donbas.
Having been on the front foot for the last few weeks, Ukraine is under pressure again and pleading for more military support from the West and greater flexibility in the way it can use it.
Most of all it wants to be able to strike Russian targets deeper inside Russia, which allies are reluctant to authorise fearful of the risk of further escalation.
Five air alerts sounded in the Kyiv region overnight, which had struggled with blackouts after a heavy onslaught targeting power facilities on Monday.
Falling debris from the overnight attack also led to fires on the outskirts of the capital.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal urged Ukraine’s allies to provide it with long-range weapons and permission to use them on targets inside Russia.
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“In order to stop the barbaric shelling of Ukrainian cities, it is necessary to destroy the place from which the Russian missiles are launched,” Mr Shmyhal said. “We count on the support of our allies and will definitely make Russia pay.”
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President Joe Biden called the Russian attack on energy infrastructure “outrageous” and said he had “reprioritised US air defence exports so they are sent to Ukraine first”.
He also said the US was “surging energy equipment to Ukraine to repair its systems and strengthen the resilience of Ukraine’s energy grid”.
The Russian Defence Ministry said the attacks used “long-range precision air and sea-based weapons and strike drones against critical energy infrastructure facilities that support the operation of Ukraine’s military-industrial complex. All designated targets were hit.”