SUDZHA, Russia –
The trail of destruction lies in the path Ukrainian forces blazed in their risky incursion into Russia, blasting through the border and eventually into the town of Sudzha, where Associated Press reporters traveled Friday on a trip organized by the Ukrainian government.
Artillery fire has blown pieces from a statue of Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin that stands in the central square of a Russian city that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday was fully under the control of his forces. The administration building’s windows have been blown out, and its bright yellow facade is burned and riddled with bullet holes.
Ukrainian forces have overrun one Russian settlement after another in a surprise operation that Kiev hopes will change the dynamics of the 2 1/2-year-old conflict.
The Russian military has so far struggled to respond effectively to an offensive in its Kursk region, the country’s largest since World War II. Sudzha, 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border, is the largest town captured by Ukrainian forces since the offensive began on August 6.
Evidence of Ukraine’s blitzkrieg lines the roads leading into the city. On the debris-filled grass is a bullet-blasted sign with arrows pointing in two directions: Ukraine to the left and Russia to the right. There is a burnt out tank by the side of the road.
The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine reviewed the photos and videos published by the AP, as is customary for such trips.
The attack has reshaped the conflict, leading to the evacuation of more than 120,000 civilians, according to Russian officials, and the capture of at least 100 Russian soldiers, according to Kiev. It is widely seen as a major morale boost for the country and the military, which is struggling to counter Russia’s steady advance more than two years after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine.
But so far it has not undermined Russia’s overall strategic interest.
The full scope of the Kursk operation remains unclear, including how long Ukraine is willing to hold Russian territory and for what purpose. Will Sudzha become a bargaining chip in future ceasefire negotiations? And if so, will Ukraine assume the role of an occupier in a country that in turn controls a fifth of its own territory?
Ukrainian officials and soldiers have said that diverting Russian reserves away from the main battlegrounds in eastern Ukraine is the minimum objective of the Kursk offensive, but Moscow has shown no sign of withdrawing significant forces from the fighting there or slowing its pace.
Zelenskyy has said that Ukraine will establish a command office in Sudzha to coordinate aid and military affairs. This suggests that Ukraine may be planning to stay in the Kursk region for the long term – or at least want to signal to Moscow that it could.
Western backers of Ukraine have remained largely silent on the surprise operation, although US President Joe Biden said he had been kept informed of developments.
With a population of just 5,000 before the conflict began, Sudjha is of strategic importance. From the city, the troops reach the main roads to continue their operations in Russia. The natural gas flowing from the West Siberian gas fields through Ukraine to Central Europe passes through the measuring station located in the Sudzha region. However, Ukraine can also cut off this gas flow from its own territory.
In a Russian town, residents huddled in the basement of a school on Friday. Wondering their fate, the Ukrainian forces pressed their advance on Kursk. Fighting continued south of Korenevo, a city the size of Sudzha, which would be an important tactical victory.
