Kyiv will keep the part of Kursk that is has captured indefinitely; Moscow transfers troops from Donetsk to the Kursk region.

Ukraine will keep the occupied territories of the Kursk region indefinitely in order to force Putin to sit down at the negotiating table sooner, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. According to him, occupying Russian territories is an integral part of Ukraine’s plan to end the war. Kyiv will soon present this plan to its allies, including Washington.

“We don’t need their land. But Ukraine will keep the occupied territories, as they are part of our ‘victory plan’ in the war,” Zelenskyy said.

He also explained that the operation was kept in strict secrecy because Kyiv’s counteroffensive failed last summer largely because it was widely advertised and talked about, giving Russia time to prepare.

In turn, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that the Russian Federation has redirected about 60,000 troops to the Kursk region, including those from the Pokrovsk area. But for now, Putin is trying to maintain the pace of the offensive on Pokrovsk and is in no hurry to liberate Kursk Oblast.