In addition, the arrival of some 12,000 North Korean soldiers in Kursk has bolstered Russia's offensive operations, and Ukraine has now lost about half of the territory it once occupied in Kursk.
Ukraine's military said that the Russian forces had gained a "foothold" on the outskirts of Sudzha, a border town, adding that "currently, the Russian special forces are being identified, blocked, and destroyed. The enemy losses in the Sudzha area are very significant."
But in the face of Moscow's gains so far in the region, some Ukrainians have suggested that the Kursk incursion may have exhausted its strategic value.