Pentagon does not consider Ukraine’s operation in Kursk region an escalation
The U.S. Department of Defense does not consider the operation of Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region of Russia to be an escalation.
We do not believe that this is an escalation. Ukraine is doing what it needs to do to be successful on the battlefield,” said Deputy Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh.
She added that the United States will continue to support Ukraine with the necessary means.
Zelenskyy and Syrskyi officially confirmed the operation in Kursk region
On August 12, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi directly confirmed the offensive operation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation for the first time.
As of August 12, it was known that about a thousand square kilometers of Russian territory were under the control of Ukrainian troops.
The President also thanked the military “for their resilience and decisive actions” and instructed the Minister of the Interior, other government officials, and the Security Service of
Ukraine to “prepare a humanitarian plan for the area of the operation”.
Ukraine received EUR 4.2 billion from the EU under the Ukraine Facility program
Ukraine has received EUR 4.2 billion from the European Union under the Ukraine Facility program. The funds will be used for social programs, humanitarian aid and other important budget programs.
Since the beginning of the year, the EU has provided Ukraine with over EUR 12 billion in budget support. Denys Shmyhal emphasized that Ukraine continues to implement reforms that are important for the country’s sustainability, development and future. The next tranche of aid is expected by the end of the year.
Ukraine and the United Kingdom began to develop an agreement on 100-year partnership
Ukraine and the United Kingdom held the first round of negotiations on a bilateral agreement on the transition to a stronger and deeper partnership.
The United Kingdom was the first to sign a security agreement with Ukraine, and now it is the first to work on a historic document on 100-year partnership, – said the head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak.
The future long-term agreement will be based on the provisions of the 2020 Agreement on Political Cooperation, Free Trade and Strategic Partnership and the 2024 Agreement on Security Cooperation between Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
Russian soldiers start surrendering en masse in Kursk region
Over 200 Russian soldiers surrendered in the Kursk region on August 14. These data are provided by the project “I Want to Live”.
According to the project, this is the largest single capture of enemy infantry since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
A company of Russian military surrendered in the Kursk region. More than a hundred Russians, abandoned by their commanders, decided to surrender.
In addition, the SBU’s Alpha special forces unit also conducted a special operation during which it captured the company’s stronghold and captured 102 soldiers of the 488th Guards Motorized Rifle Regiment of the Russian Armed Forces and Kadyrov’s “Akhmat”.
Ukraine and Russia start negotiations on prisoner exchange in Kursk
Ukraine says it has started negotiations with Russia on the exchange of prisoners captured by Kyiv as it continues its operation in the Kursk region.
On August 14, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets told local media that his Russian counterpart had contacted him to start discussing the exchange of prisoners of war. Ukraine’s military intelligence, which is negotiating the prisoner of war deal, also confirmed to the media that it was working on the exchange.
As noted by the Financial Times, Kyiv does not disclose the exact number of Russian prisoners captured by its forces during the Kursk operation, but government officials and military officials on the border said the number is in the “hundreds.”
Kateryna Yashchuk
