Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the country’s troops have full control of the Russian town of Sudzha in the Kursk region in their incursion into Russian territory.
The town, the largest that Ukraine has reportedly seized so far, had a pre-war population of around 5,000 people. It holds a measuring station for Russian natural gas that flows through Ukrainian pipelines to Europe.
Natural gas flows from West Siberian gas fields through pipes that pass through Sudzha and cross the Ukrainian border into Ukraine’s system.
On Thursday, Zelenskyy said a Ukrainian military commander’s office was being set up in Sudzha. He didn’t elaborate on the details or the functions of the office.
The claim couldn’t be independently verified. Russia did not immediately respond to Zelenskyy’s statement, but its defence ministry said earlier on Thursday that Russian forces had blocked attempts to take several other communities.
There was no indication of any disruption of the gas flow through Sudzha, which accounts for about 3 per cent of Europe’s imports.
Satellite images analysed by The Associated Press on Thursday show that a Ukrainian drone attack on Russian air bases damaged at least two hangars and other areas.
Images taken Wednesday by Planet Labs PBC show that two hangars at Borisoglebsk Air Base had been struck, with a field of debris around both. It was not immediately clear what purpose the hangars served. There also appeared to be potential damage to two fighter aircraft at the base.
Separately, at Savasleika Air Base, one burn mark could be seen on the apron in image on Wednesday, though there was no apparent damage to the fighter jets and other aircraft there.
Kursk acting Governor Alexei Smirnov on Thursday ordered the evacuation of the bordering Glushkovo region, about 45 kilometres north-west of Sudzha, as Ukraine’s daring incursion entered its second week.
The evacuation order suggests Ukrainian forces are gradually advancing toward the area. Authorities say more than 120,000 residents in the Kursk region already have been evacuated.
At a facility receiving evacuees, Tatyana Anikeyeva told of her flight from the fighting.
“We were rushing from Sudzha. … We hid in the bushes. Volunteers were handing out water, food, bread to people on the go. The sound of the cannonade continued without any break. The house was shaking,” she told Russian state television.
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