LOS ANGELES.–Congratulating himself for his latest conquest in Russia, Ukraine’s 46-year-old Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked his troops for capturing another Russian town, this time giving Ukrainian forces a sizable foothold in Russian territory. Zelensky launched Aub 6 a bold cross border invasion using up to 12,000 Ukrainian troops, humiliating 71-year-old Russian President Vladimir Putin, prompting Western officials to question what’s Zelensky’s end-game? Capturing more Russian territory, some military experts, like the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War [ISW], said Zelensky won himself more leverage in any future peace talks with Putin by seizing Russian territory. How long Ukraine can hold the territory is anyone’s guess? Putin has already called in reinforcements to the Kursk region where Zelensky has captured over 100 square miles of Russian territory.
Zelenky doesn’t know how long it takes for the Kremlin to send troops to the region to expel Ukrainian forces. If Zelensky isn’t careful, he could lose sizable numbers of troops in a pincer maneuver where Russian troops surround the Ukrainian army, calls in air support and begins to massacre of what left of Zelensky’s troops. Western officials and press have hailed Zelensky’s latest move as giving Putin a taste of his own medicine. Ukraine’s military commander in chief Col. Olekasndr Syrskyi confirmed that his forces had captured Sukzha and was setting up a command-and-control center, planning on digging in to the area. “I thank every warrior of ours who ensures all this,” said Zelensky, boasting about his move. Zelensky thinks that Ukraine forces in Donbas are ready to seize more territory once Putin redeploys his forces to deal with the latest Russian invasion.
Russian officials have admitted nothing about losing Sudzha to Ukrainian forces but reports corroborate Zelensky’s statements. Fighting around Sudzha is expected to intensify once Russian reinforcement arrive, prompting a battle to reclaim lost Russian territory. Putin assured his top commanders that Russian has plenty of troops to reclaim Sudzha and oust Ukrainian troops from the Kursk region. Zelensky’s surprise invasion of Kursk threw Russian officials for a loop, showing chinks in the Russian armor especially along its long border with Ukraine. Zelensky claims that he holds some 386 square miles of Russian territory, far greater than first reported. Ukraine has advanced its invasion southeast of Sudzha in many directions, opening up a new battlefield to dilute Russian forces in Donbas to the greatest extent possible. No one knows the staying power of Ukrainian troops.
Zelensky hopes to divert Russian forces from the frontlines in Donbas, giving Ukraine’s army a chance to take back more sovereign territory. Military experts were surprised at how poorly defended the Russian frontier in the Kursk and Belograd regions along the Ukrainian border. Zelensky took a bold step to invade Russia and put the Kremlin on the defense trying now to expel Ukrainian forces from the Kursk region. Ukraine’s military has captured dozens of Russian troops, something that Zelensky can use in a future prisoner swap, knowing how many Ukrainian soldiers Russia currently holds. Zelensky seeks nothing short of exposing the Russian army as a military fraud, unable to match the ferocity of the Ukrainian army, currently grabbing more Russian territory to gain more leverage at any future peace talks. Zelensky wants all Russian troops out of Ukraine.
Zelensky’s move into Kursk now seizing Sudzha escalates the conflict, not knowing the eventual Russian response. President Joe Biden, 81, Zelensky’s comrade in arms, expressed approval for the latest Ukrainian move into Russia. If Russia drives Ukrainian troops out of Kursk or, worse yet, massacres the Ukrainian army, it would put Zelensky on his heels, subject to potentially insurmountable criticism for endangering Ukrainian troops. Ukraine’s casualties since the Feb. 24, 2022 war began are estimated at 70,000 troops, compared to Russia at about 40,000. So, if Zelensky strategic incursion into Kursk backfires, it could hasten calls for his ouster. Pentagon officials can do little to save Ukrainian forces now under siege in Kursk. When Russian military reinforcement arrive in the region, it could be another bloodbath like Mariupol, Kherson, Rubizhine and Kharkiv.
Zelensky brazen invasion of Kursk carries high risks for Ukraine especially if a Battle Royale ensues when Russian forces finally arrive at the scene. How many more retaliatory missile or bombing strikes hit Kiev or Kharkiv is anyone’s guess. Zelensky knows that at some point Ukrainian forces are going to face the full wrath of the Russian army, busy sending reinforcements to the region. Zelensky has certainly gotten world attention, showing that PR plays an important role in continuing the war, where any battlefield success improves Ukrainian morale and that of allies busy supplying Ukraine more cash-and-weapons to attack Russia. Zelensky better figure out Plan B when the Russian army arrives in Kursk to take back Sudzha other Russian villages in the Kursk region. Today’s victory could easily backfire into Ukraine’s biggestloss in the three-year-old war.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
