Unrealistic deadline: when the Kremlin wants to oust the Ukrainian Armed Forces from Kursk region

Unrealistic deadline: when the Kremlin wants to oust the Ukrainian Armed Forces from Kursk region Natalia Belzetskaya

The Russian authorities have set new deadlines for their troops to recapture the territory of the Kursk region, which is under the control of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Kremlin sources claim that Vladimir Putin allegedly wants to oust the Ukrainian military in the coming months.

The date for the liberation of Kursk region is allegedly February 1, 2025, and a so-called “buffer zone” should be created by February 25. As military-political observer of the Information Resistance group Alexander Kovalenko told Channel 24, this time Putin chose more realistic deadlines.

Why Putin chose such deadlines

Previously, the head of the Kremlin chose deadlines for one month, several weeks. But in the case of Kurshchina, they are talking about months. This indicates that Putin has approached the issue more rationally.

If we are talking about February 1, 2025, this is more or less realistic. But when Russian troops launched a counteroffensive in the Kursk region on September 10, they were supposed to liberate it by Putin's birthday on October 7, according to the established deadlines, noted Alexander Kovalenko.

This did not happen and as of October 22, 2024, the Ukrainian Defense Forces not only did not leave the Kursk region, but also counterattacked, sometimes occupying positions and settlements that the Russians reported as liberated.

These are all elements of a maneuver war, which Russia does not know how to fight. The Russians do not understand where the Ukrainian Armed Forces advanced, over which village our soldiers established control. This is because there is no stabilized line of combat, which we see in Ukraine, so the invaders feel more confident on Ukrainian territory than on their own.

In addition, the occupiers said that they will create a so-called “buffer zone” by February 25. Using the example of the northern part of the Kharkiv region, we see that such actions are ineffective and uncomfortable for Russians.

Creating a “buffer zone” along the border with Ukraine is an unrealistic deadline. It is at odds with a more or less rational approach to the Kursk region. But it seems to me that they will not be able to achieve either the first or the second and are getting another deadline, for example, May 9, – concluded Alexander Kovalenko.