Ukraine's Push into Russia a New Twist in Long War
The Ukraine army's surprise charge into Russia in the first week of August caught the Kremlin's forces by surprise.
Russian President Vladimir Putin described the Ukrainian incursion into the country's southwestern Kursk region — about 500 kilometers from Moscow — as a "large-scale provocation."
The strategic goal of Ukraine's biggest cross-border incursion in almost 900 days of the war remains unclear.
Kyiv's aim could be to pull Russian soldiers to the area, potentially weakening Moscow's offensive operations in other parts of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.
But it could risk stretching Ukrainian troops further along the front line, which is more than 1,000 kilometers long.
However, the August 6 incursion does add a new twist to the war.
Launched from Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region, it opens a new area of conflict and, significantly, on Russian soil.
Some analysts say it is a short-term incursion, but others say it could be the start of a push to take the city of Kursk and a nearby nuclear power plant.
Myhailo Podolyak, a top adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said that border region attacks will cause Russia to "start to realize that the war is slowly creeping inside of Russian territory."
He also suggested such an operation would give Kyiv a stronger negotiating position if there are talks held with Moscow.
Russia's own slow but relentless offensive has achieved only small gains and brought heavy losses of troops and armor. But, bit by bit, the advances are adding up.
These summer months are critical for Ukraine and its weakened army. It must keep at bay its bigger and better-equipped enemy, while repairing — before winter arrives — a national power grid smashed by Russian attacks.
Separately, Ukraine has boosted its air defenses with the delivery of a number of F-16 fighter jets.
Zelenskyy hopes that the planes will strengthen Ukraine's air force but analysts say they won't turn the tide of the war on their own.
