The operation of the Defense Forces in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation has thwarted Russia’s plans to create its own buffer zone in Ukraine, Babel reports.
This was announced at a press conference by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The Kursk operation brought several things. Firstly, the occupation of the Kharkiv region has been stopped, we had information about the creation of buffer zones in the Kharkiv region and then in the north. We didn’t know the specifics, but we understood that Sumy and Chernihiv regions could be in the plans, – he emphasized.
Zelenskyy also emphasized that the Kursk operation prevented the occupation of Sumy and Chernihiv regions and defeated a major grouping of Russian troops.
And today, after the Kursk operation, the movement [of Russian forces] from Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia has actually taken place. Whether it will continue depends on us, on how long we will successfully continue the Kursk operation. And the fact that they are not withdrawing troops from Donetsk region is understandable: their best-trained troops are there and this is their strategic direction – they really want to occupy Donetsk region, – Zelenskyy added.
The President of Ukraine commented on media reports that the Kursk operation allegedly disrupted energy talks in Qatar.
The Kursk operation and the meeting in Qatar are completely unrelated. The Kursk operation is not connected to any of the points of the peace formula. A lot of things are written, but sometimes it doesn’t help much. The Kursk operation had different goals than a meeting on energy with colleagues. Energy is very important, but it is important to end the war, – the president said, without specifying whether he planned to meet with Russian representatives in Qatar.
He also added that the meeting was not disrupted – it was held online.
