Estonian intelligence: Ukraine takes advantage of Russian troops regrouping to advance in Kursk Oblast
Colonel Ants Kiviselg, Head of the Estonian Defence Forces' Intelligence Centre, has reported that after a limited success in Donetsk Oblast, Russia began reorganising its forces.
As reported by ERR, an Estonian public broadcaster, Kiviselg stated that Russia has reduced the frequency of attacks over the past week, primarily due to the reorganisation of its armed forces.
He stated that after capturing the settlements of Velyka Novosilka and Kurakhove in Donetsk Oblast, Russia started replenishing and restoring its units in the area.
Kiviselg noted that Russian troops' offensive focus remained unchanged, continuing to target the Pokrovsk area in Donetsk Oblast.
"Russian forces have made gradual progress in the area, advancing by approximately 10 sq km over the past seven days," Kiviselg said.
Kiviselg warned that Russia might deploy additional units near the city of Pokrovsk in the coming weeks to cut off supply routes and fully isolate the city.
"To conclude, the war of attrition continues and the most notable event last week was a significant precision strike on targets in Ukraine on 1 February. Russia employed strategic bombers, long-range bombers and Kalibr missiles from the Black Sea region, along with Iskander ballistic and cruise missiles from Crimea and mainland Russia," he pointed out.
Meanwhile, Kiviselg mentioned that Ukraine has continued successful strikes on key infrastructure in Russia.
"These attacks mainly targeted oil industry infrastructure, reducing financial resources that would otherwise support Russia's military industry and aggression against Ukraine," he added.
Kiviselg reported that North Korean units stationed in Russia's Kursk Oblast are undergoing replenishment, leading to a decrease in military activity in the region.
"Ukrainian forces took advantage of this by launching successful attacks in Kursk Oblast yesterday (6 February), capturing new settlements and areas, particularly southeast of the city of Sudzha," he concluded.
However, Kiviselg said, this has not hindered Russian forces from continuing their offensives on the northern and central parts of the front line.
Kiviselg highlighted that Russian troops maintained a foothold north of Kupiansk at the village of Dvorichna, across the Oskil River. "It is likely they aim to expand this bridgehead to tie down Ukrainian forces and potentially disperse them across multiple fronts," he added.
The settlements of Kupiansk and Dvorichna on the map.
Currently, the Russian bridgehead across the Oskil River comprises about one hundred soldiers, though Kiviselg emphasised that Russia has managed to hold this position for a considerable time.
On 6 December, Ukraine's General Staff reported that during the Kursk operation, which began six months ago on Russian territory, Russia lost nearly 40,000 personnel, over 16,000 were killed and 909 were captured.
In late January, Kiviselg stated that North Korea might send more troops to aid Russia by the summer.
Additionally, Gert Kaju, head of the Estonian Defence Ministry’s Preparedness Department, indicated that despite heavy losses, Russian forces in Ukraine continue to push forward gradually while maintaining combat momentum.