Ukrainian forces’ Kursk operation claims over 38,000 Russian soldier casualties – Syrskyi

During the operation of the Ukrainian Defense Forces in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation, the occupiers lost more than 38 thousand soldiers.

The Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's armed forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, reported that.

Also, during the operation on this front, more than 700 soldiers of the Russian army were captured.

"We will continue to destroy the occupiers. And it doesn't matter what passports they have: Russian or North Korean," Syrskyi said.

The commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces also mentioned that he had visited the Kursk front and given awards to Ukrainian defenders serving in the Kuresk region.

He noted that the Ukrainian military's actions forced the Russian army to maintain a significant grouping of forces on its territory and transfer reserves from other directions.

It should be noted that in early November 2024, Syrskyi already named the losses of the Russians in the battles in the Kursk region. According to him:

• Russia lost 7,905 soldiers killed,
• 12,220 wounded.
• In addition, another 717 Russians were captured.

He later stated that losses among Ukrainian soldiers during the offensive on the Kursk region "were actually half as much as those who defended themselves."

For reference:

Ukrainian troops won a tactical victory that raised their morale when they captured about 1,200 sq. km of Russian territory, captured 594 enemy soldiers, and controlled more than 100 settlements after a surprise attack on August 6.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine would hold Russian territory, as this is an integral part of the plan to win the war.

Currently, Russia has concentrated on 50 thousand soldiers in the Kursk region, including North Koreans, who are preparing for offensive actions.

In early November, the General Staff of Ukraine's armed forces reported that since the beginning of the Kursk operation, the Russian Federation has lost more than 20 thousand personnel. Ukrainian defenders have also destroyed 1,101 units of enemy weapons and military equipment.

According to Reuters, by the end of November, Ukraine had lost more than 40% of the territory it controlled in the Kursk region.

It was announced on December 31 that the Special Operations Forces had taken control of a village in the Kursk region of Russia. In addition to the Russian military, the village also had North Korean troops stationed there. It is yet to be revealed which specific settlement was captured during the unexpected operation that began in August. Presently, Ukraine's armed forces have control over approximately 800 square kilometers of Russian land.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Vladimir Putin has tasked his troops with retaking the Kursk region by January 20, 2025, the day of US President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration.

It is worth adding that the Russians are spreading false information, claiming that the Ukrainian army utilized Western chemical weapons in Sudzha. Rubryka has disproven this false claim.