Ukraine has no intention of occupying Russian territories, it is only trying to protect its citizens and military personnel, said a representative of the Foreign Ministry in Kyiv. Ukraine intends to establish a buffer zone in the Kursk region.
Photo: Viacheslav Ratynskyi/Reuters
Ukraine’s armed forces will halt an offensive in the Kursk region when Russia agrees to a “just peace” and the terms of a “peace formula” proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgy Tikhiy said. “The sooner the Russian Federation agrees to restore a just world, especially on the basis of the ‘peace formula’, the sooner the airstrikes of the Ukrainian Defense Forces on the territory of the Russian Federation will stop,” he told the conference. briefing in Kyiv on Tuesday, August 13.
A representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine described Ukraine’s actions in the territory adjacent to Russia as “absolutely legal”, taking into account the right to self-defense enshrined in the UN Charter. According to him, his country is not interested in annexing Russian territories, but wants to protect the lives of its residents. In addition, this operation is intended to complicate the logistical support of the Russian armed forces and prevent them from moving additional units to the Donetsk region.
Ukraine wants to create a buffer zone in the Kursk region
Tikhiy said Ukraine is trying to create a buffer zone in the Kursk region to protect its population and armed forces. Since the beginning of June alone, the Russian armed forces have carried out more than 2,000 strikes on the Sumy region using 255 guided bombs and more than 100 missiles from the territory of the Kursk region.
“Unfortunately, Ukraine does not have sufficient capabilities to launch long-range strikes to protect itself from this terror,” he said. Therefore, with the help of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Kiev wants to liberate the border areas “from Russian military contingents attacking Ukraine,” explained the Foreign Ministry representative.
“The Armed Forces of Ukraine are a European military force that fully complies with the laws and traditions of war. The objectives of the armed forces of Ukraine are only military actions. The operation will protect our people and the territory of Ukraine from attacks by the Russian Federation,” added Tikhiy.
Attack of the armed forces of Ukraine in the Kursk region
The Armed Forces of Ukraine have been conducting a military operation in the Kursk region since August 6, 2024. According to the reports of the Ministry of Defense of Russia and Telegram channels of Russian propaganda, Ukrainian troops captured part of the border territory of Russia and penetrated more than 10 kilometers into the interior. On August 12, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskiy, announced that the Ukrainian army was in control of an area of about 1,000 square kilometers in the Kursk region.
At the same time, the acting governor of the Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, admitted that on August 12, the armed forces of Ukraine took control of 28 settlements in his region. According to media estimates, this number may be even higher.
“Thousands” of Ukrainian soldiers are participating in military operations in the Kursk region. This was reported by the AFP agency with reference to an unnamed high-ranking official in the security sector of Ukraine. According to him, the purpose of the attack is to “stretch” Russian forces and “destabilize” the country.
