Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president, stated that 38,000 Russian soldiers were killed or wounded fighting in Russia’s west Kursk Region since August. Kyiv recently launched a new offensive against this border area.

In a statement posted on the website for the Presidency on Monday, Zelenskyy said: “We’ll continue to maintain an area buffer on Russian soil and actively destroy Russian capability there.”

It was five months ago that Ukrainian forces entered Kursk in a surprise attack in the summer of 2024. In the intervening time, Russian forces, backed recently by North Korean troops, have slowly taken background to try and expel Ukrainian troops.

On Sunday, both Ukrainian and Russian officials confirmed that Kyiv has launched a fresh offensive in Kursk. Reports of violent fighting in multiple villages were made.

Zelenskyy said that since the beginning of the Kursk Operation, the enemy has lost over 38,000 soldiers, including 15,000 irreversible injuries.

“The Russians have deployed their strong units to the Kursk region,” he added. “Soldiers from North Korea are involved there. What’s important is that the occupier cannot currently redirect all this force to other directions, in particular the Donetsk, Sumy, Kharkiv or Zaporizhzhia regions.”

Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to all of the warriors who helped bring the conflict back into Russia and give Ukraine greater strength and security.

Bloggers reported an attack further west on Tetkino.

In an official statement released on Monday, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed two successful attacks. According to a Telegram message, “the operation to destroy Ukrainian Armed Forces Formations is continuing.”

According to the Institute for the Study of War, Ukraine has increased its offensive operations in Kursk up until Monday. In the meantime, Russian forces from other parts of the area launched new attacks on the Ukrainian salient.

Although the extent of Ukrainian troops’ successes is unknown, the think-tank reported that they made “tactical advances” in areas of north Sudzha.

Andriy Yermak — the head of Zelenskyy’s presidential office — wrote Sunday in a post to Telegram there was “good news” from the Kursk battlefields, adding: “Russia is getting what it deserves.”

Two weeks before Donald Trump was inaugurated, Ukraine launched the latest Kursk offensive. Trump repeatedly suggested that Ukraine should be pressed for political and territorial concessions to achieve peace.

Zelenskyy and his top officials have been working hard to establish ties and convince the President-elect that Ukraine needs to be supported, and Russia must be contained.

Zelenskyy said Monday that he “held a meeting with international relations officials to plan our meetings and negotiations for January.”

He said: “We’re working to establish new and more lasting relationships with partners, and we’re accelerating the supply of arms to Ukraine. We are preparing some good news for Ukraine on the diplomatic front. “

The presence of Ukrainian forces in Kursk may give Kyiv more leverage in peace negotiations with Moscow. About 25% of Ukraine’s internationally recognized territory is still occupied by Russian troops.

“We don’t need Russian territory, but we do need our territories back,” Yehor Chniv said. He is a member of the Ukrainian delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

Cherniev said, “This is likely to be one of the positions on which future negotiations will focus.”