Russians lost 38,000 soldiers in the Kursk region, according to Syrsky.

This was reported by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Alexander Syrsky.

During the operation in this area, more than 700 soldiers of the Russian army were captured.

“We will continue to eliminate the occupiers, regardless of whether they hold Russian or North Korean passports,” Syrsky stated.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine also mentioned that he visited the Kursk direction and awarded Ukrainian defenders operating in the Kursk region.

He noted that the actions of the Ukrainian military forced the Russian army to maintain a significant grouping of forces on their territory and to redeploy reserves from other directions.

It is worth noting that at the beginning of November 2024, Syrsky had already mentioned Russian losses in battles in the Kursk region. According to him, Russia suffered 7,905 killed and 12,220 wounded. Additionally, 717 Russians were captured.

He later stated that the losses among Ukrainian soldiers during the offensive in the Kursk region “were actually half as much as those defending.”

What is currently happening in the Kursk region?

In November, the New York Times, citing anonymous Ukrainian and American officials, reported that for the offensive in the Kursk region, Russia gathered a grouping of 50,000 troops, including North Korean soldiers. This was later confirmed by President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Zelensky confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin aimed to push Ukrainian forces out of the Kursk region by the inauguration of newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump.

At the same time, former Commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Alexander Pavlyuk, noted that Russian troops in the Kursk region changed their tactics for offensive operations. They are now operating in small groups, attempting to breach Ukraine's defenses.

As of December 17, military sources confirmed to hromadske that half of the territory of the Kursk region, which had been captured by Ukrainian forces since the start of the operation, has already come under Russian control.

On December 31, it became known that Special Operations Forces occupied a village in the Kursk region of Russia. Alongside Russian troops, North Korean forces also held the village. It is still unknown which settlement was captured.