This week, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Kursk and Russian media claimed that the region had been completely liberated. However, this was contradicted by President Volodymyr Zelensky who stated on May 21 that Ukraine is still active in the Kursk region and is acting on enemy territory to keep Ukraine safe.
In early May, Putin told the TASS state media outlet that Moscow’s troops had driven all of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) out of the region and inflicted heavy losses, stating:
“The Kyiv regime’s venture has failed completely [with] huge losses suffered by the enemy, in particular those among the most combat-fit, best prepared and equipped Ukrainian army units… [this] will undoubtedly have [an] impact along the entire front line.”
A report from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) on May 21 confirmed that Ukraine is still active in Kursk, although only occupying a small area. Heavy fighting has reportedly continued in the last few days.
According to Zelensky, Russia has lost more than 63.000 soldiers in the Kursk region. The AFU reported on X in early May that during the whole Kursk operation to date, Russia had lost around 62,400 troops, including 25,200 killed and 36,200 wounded. Additionally, 1,000 Russian military personnel had reportedly been captured and more than 4,500 North Korean soldiers killed or wounded.
However, not everything has gone Ukraine’s way. Ukrainian field commander Oleksandr Shirshyn resigned because, in his view, stupid missions were ordered by the AFU’s senior leadership.
Ukraine launched its initial offensive into Kursk in August 2024, which caught Russia by surprise and led to more than 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) being occupied. Russia launched several counter offensives which, according to the ISW, recovered almost half of the area held by October. Moscow was helped in its efforts by an alleged 10-12,000 North Korean troops who suffered heavy losses.
Russia kept up the pressure and, by March 2025, Ukraine confirmed that it had withdrawn its troops from the city of Sudzha.
In early May, the AFU said that Ukrainian forces were still occupying parts of the area that they seized in August. Both Russia and Ukraine aim to create a buffer zone in the region around Kursk.
Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksander Syrsky said in a Facebook post that the Kursk Operation had reached most of its objectives, preventing Russia from launching its own offensive campaign into Ukraine’s Sumy and Kharkiv regions, and attempting to create a buffer zone to Ukraine’s benefit.
Russia is meanwhile seeking to establish a buffer zone on Ukrainian territory, with the head of the Kursk region advocating the annexation of Sumy, stating that “Sumy should be included in the territory of Kursk Oblast or the territory of Glushkovsky District”.