In August, a strong Ukrainian force eventually numbering around 20,000 troops invaded Kursk Oblast in western Russia, aiming to draw Russian forces away from the front line in eastern Ukraine while also seizing part of the oblast as a bargaining chip for any future ceasefire negotiations.

Russia's defence ministry said its troops repelled a Ukrainian counteroffensive in Russia's western Kursk region on Thursday. The Russian report came six months to the day since Ukraine's military pushed across the border into the Kursk region,

During a new series of mechanized assaults in Russia’s Kursk region, Ukraine’s Defense Forces advanced up to five kilometers southeast of Sudzha, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports. "Geolocated footage published on February 6 indicates that Ukrainian forces recently advanced southwest of Makhnovka and north and east of Cherkasskaya