"Russia has lost 6 thousand soldiers": Zelenskyy tells how many territories in Kursk region are controlled by the Armed Forces

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that during the month of the Ukrainian Armed Forces' offensive in the Kursk region, Russia lost 6,000 of its military in killed and wounded. Currently, Ukrainian defenders control more than 1300 square kilometers of territory there, including more than a hundred settlements.

Zelenskyy made the statement on September 6 during a meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine's Defense in Germany, known as the Ramstein Group. According to the president, the aggressor country has lost tens of thousands more occupants on other frontlines.

"As of now, during the first month of our operation, Russian troops have lost about 6,000 soldiers killed and wounded in the Kursk region alone, as well as tens of thousands of Russian troops in other combat zones," the head of state said.

He also said that from the Kursk region, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin was preparing to spread the war to Ukrainian territory, in particular, to launch a new offensive against Sumy.

"Today we control a territory of more than 1,300 square kilometers in the Kursk region, which includes, in particular, more than a hundred settlements," Zelenskyy said.

Much of this territory was simply abandoned by the Russian army, he added.

It is thanks to the Armed Forces' operation that there is currently no threat of a Russian offensive in Sumy region, as was the case in May when Russian troops attacked Kharkiv region, Zelenskyy said.

"Thanks to our actions, there are no threats that Russia will launch a new offensive on our territory against the city of Sumy, as it was in May when Putin launched an offensive against Kharkiv," the Ukrainian leader said.

He also said that while the defenders of Ukraine are advancing in the Kursk region, the most capable units of the Russian military are involved in the occupation of Ukraine.

This means that Putin does not really want to protect anyone and does not care about Russian territory or people, Zelenskyy said.

As a reminder, on September 5, Zelenskyy said that during the Ukrainian Armed Forces' offensive in the Kursk region, more than 600 Russian military personnel, including officers and Qaeda fighters, had been captured. According to the head of state, replenishing the fund for the exchange of prisoners was one of the goals of the operation.

According to UK intelligence, the increase in Russian losses in August was caused by the Ukrainian invasion of Kursk and the Russian offensive in the Pokrovsk sector.

As OBOZ.UA previously reported, Putin said the day before that Russia's primary goal in the war is the alleged "liberation" of Donbas, and Ukraine is allegedly trying unsuccessfully to divert Moscow's attention from this goal by attacking Kursk. The dictator also claims that the Russians have allegedly begun to "squeeze the enemy out" of the border areas.

At the same time, ISW pointed out that the Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to advance deep into the Kursk region.

The analysts also noted that Putin is trying to downplay the importance of the operational consequences of the Armed Forces' operation and convince Russians that the Ukrainian presence in Kursk is acceptable in exchange for Russia's advance in Donetsk region. The Kremlin chief's statements about the alleged failure of the Ukrainian Armed Forces operation are clearly false – these events have influenced the course of hostilities and are likely to continue to affect Russian offensive and defensive capabilities after the end of the operations near Pokrovsk, ISW believes.

The day before, the head of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi, called the operation near Kursk a success.

Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!