Andrii Kovalenko, head of the Ukrainian Centre for Countering Disinformation, said that Ukrainian forces had launched surprise attacks against Russian forces in several locations across the region, five months after launching their incursion there, US broadcaster CNN reported.
Ukrainian forces have maintained control over a portion of Russian territory, which could serve as a strategic bargaining chip in potential peace negotiations, according to the Reuters news agency.
Russia's defense ministry said on Sunday that its forces were repelling Ukrainian advances, but some Russian military bloggers suggested that Russian troops were under significant pressure in the area, according to Reuters.
Ukrainian presidential aide Andriy Yermak said in a post that there was "good news" from the Kursk region, adding that "Russia is getting what it deserves."
Ukrainian and Western assessments say that some 11,000 troops from Russia's ally North Korea have been deployed in the Kursk region to support Moscow's forces, according to Reuters.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that the Russian army "lost up to a battalion of North Korean infantry soldiers and Russian paratroops" in battles over the weekend "near just one village."
Russia invaded Ukraine by land, air and sea on February 24, 2022, starting the largest military conflict in Europe since World War II.
Sunday is day 1,046 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
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Source: IAR, PAP, Reuters, CNN