Nearly two weeks after Ukrainian forces breached Russia’s Kursk region, Moscow’s response has been marked by confusion rather than strategic counteraction. Instead of assembling a formidable counterforce, Russia has been hastily deploying young conscripts from various parts of the country, pulled from less active fronts.
Ivan Chuvilayev, a representative of the Russian NGO Go by the Forest, which assists citizens seeking to avoid conscription, told the Financial Times that the organization is overwhelmed with requests for help. “People are horrified,” Chuvilayev said, noting a surge in pleas from conscripts and their families as young soldiers are sent to the Kursk front.
Initial Russian forces in Kursk included FSB Border Troops, Akhmat fighters from Chechnya, and local units from the Moscow and Leningrad military districts. However, additional forces, including conscripts from these districts, have since been deployed to the area, according to Dara Massicot, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy reported on Saturday that Ukrainian troops have fortified their positions in Kursk. Since August 6, Ukraine has claimed control over more than 80 settlements covering 1,150 square kilometers (444 square miles) in the region, marking the largest invasion of Russia since World War II. Zelenskiy emphasized the need for bold decisions from Kyiv’s allies to enable long-range strikes.
Ukraine’s Western allies have so far hesitated to provide long-range weapons, fearing escalation. Russia has condemned the incursion as a major provocation and has promised a “worthy response” to the ongoing conflict, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
