Russia seeks to pull up to 70,000 troops to Kursk region - Zelensky

The head of state spoke at the the 20th annual meeting of the Yalta European Strategy, reports Ukrinform.

"The Russians have started their rapid offensive in the Kursk direction, they want to use about 60,000 to 70,000 people there. We know that there are about 40,000 of them. They wanted quick breakthroughs. As they say, de-occupation. It is nice that not only we, but also they are talking about deoccupation of their territory. We do not see any serious successes yet. Our military is holding ground and doing everything necessary for our other military-political steps," Zelensky said.

He also noted that in general the situation at the front is difficult, but during the last week the situation in the Pokrovsk direction has somewhat leveled out.

Zelensky emphasized that the operation and Kursk region and the fighting in Donetsk region are interconnected.

"For example, we can see that the ratio of artillery rounds used in Donbas, including Pokrovsk, before the start of the Kursk operation was 1 to 12. Today it is 1 to 2.5. We understand that the situation has not yet stabilized. In this situation, we need more than the Russians if we want to stop and restore our position," said the president.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky previously stated that one of the goals of the Kursk operation for Ukraine is to draw Russian troops back to their own territory. Today, the Russians pulled about 60,000 soldiers there.

Photo: President’s Office