Ukraine rejects Putin's claim that Russia retook Kursk
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on Saturday rejected Russian President Vladimir Putin's claim that Russian forces had completely regained control of the Kursk region, where Ukraine had launched an offensive last year.
In a statement after Putin made the announcement, the Ukrainian military says their operation "in certain areas in the Kursk region continues," News.Az reports citing ABC news.
The statement by Ukraine says the situation is "difficult" but that "our units continue to hold certain positions." Putin's announcement is "nothing more than a propaganda ploy," the statement said.
Ukraine said it also still has active troops in certain areas of the Belgorod region of Russia.
In a video statement Saturday, Putin claimed that Russian forces have retaken all of Kursk, the Russian region northeast of Ukraine where Ukrainian forces had launched an offensive and managed to hold territory since the summer of 2024.
Putin congratulated military personnel and said Ukraine's offensive "has completely failed."
Moscow had been trying to push Ukrainian forces out of Kursk since they seized a chunk of the border region in a daring August offensive, marking the first time that Kyiv's forces had seized and held significant Russian territory since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022.
Russian forces, supported by North Korean troops, had been slowly trying to reclaim ground in the region over the past several months.
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