Additional Coverage:
- Zelenskyy said Ukraine told no one about the Kursk invasion because its allies would have called it ‘unrealistic’ (newsbreak.com)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that his decision to not share the plans for his country’s recent incursion into the Kursk region of Russia with international allies stemmed from their likely skepticism about the feasibility of the operation. Zelenskyy, addressing Ukraine’s foreign emissaries, explained that the surprise factor was essential for the operation’s success, which does significantly challenge Russia’s defense capabilities under President Vladimir Putin.
In an effort to maintain complete secrecy, the plan was even hidden from the Ukrainian forces until shortly before execution. According to one of the soldiers, identified as Serhiy in a report by The Economist, the troops were taken by surprise, thinking initially that it was a prank.
The sudden offensive launched on August 6 caught Russian troops unexpectedly, allowing Ukraine to rapidly secure a substantial stretch of territory, nearly equal to the land lost earlier this year to Russian advances.
Commanding Ukrainian forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi noted last week that the quick accumulation of nearly 400 square miles of Russian ground demonstrated the success of their meticulously crafted strategy. Zelenskyy commented further in his speech that the decisive and courageous actions of Ukrainian forces now demonstrate to the world that such operations can succeed, adjusting global expectations of Ukraine’s military capabilities and strategic positioning.
Requests for additional comments from Ukraine’s foreign ministry were not answered immediately.