Fighting in Kursk Oblast poses extreme risk: 'Either we beat Russians or we break,' says expert Stupak
Military expert Ivan Stupak, a former SBU Security Service
officer, discussed the high stakes of the battles in Kursk Oblast and their
impact on the broader Ukrainian fronts during an interview on Radio NV on Aug. 11.
Ivan Stupak
He also pointed to the risks and potential historical significance of the operation.
Ivan Stupak, military expert and former SBU officer:
I constantly emphasize that we must not forget that there is the east, south of Ukraine, and Kharkiv Oblast, where the fighting continues. Yes, we've been focusing on Kursk for almost a week now, celebrating the successes, but the [Russian] offensive does not stop in the east.
Although there were reports that the Russian command was redeploying some battalions from the Kherson axis, Kupyansk, and Pokrovsk to Kursk Oblast, the question remains: how many troops will they assemble, and whether this redeployment will disrupt all offensive actions of the [Russian Federation], giving our military an opportunity to seize the initiative.
The Russian General Staff is taking a very balanced approach to this, but there is political pressure to do something in Kursk by any means necessary.
On Aug. 11, there were reports that Vovchansk seemed to become much easier for our military, and they were able to push back the Russians more effectively. Let's see. Indeed, Kursk is extremely risky. It's an insane risk.
But indeed, either we will beat the Russians this way, and they will break, or we will break. Nobody knows right now—not in the President's Office, not in the Pentagon, not on Downing Street—no one knows the consequences of the operation.
The history of military affairs is being written here, without exaggeration. If everything goes well, this moment will be historic. It will be studied, without exaggeration, in almost all military academies for another 10-20 years. On par with the operation in the Korean War, when the United States defeated the North Korean troops and landed in other locations, cutting off the North Korean and Chinese troops. All this will be studied.
We want to believe that we will be able to hold onto these territories, break the Russians' offensive potential, and, as an option, put these territories up for auction or exchange during peace talks.
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