On January 5, 2025, the Armed Forces of Ukraine unexpectedly launched an offensive in the Kursk region, and there is a reason for this.
Austrian military historian and Colonel Markus Reisner explained that one of the primary objectives of this offensive is to show the newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump that "supporting Ukraine makes sense."
According to Reisner, this can only be described as a preliminary counterattack involving forces of up to three brigades. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are attempting to breach the Russian defenses to "break free from the bubble" and put an end to the ongoing attacks from three sides. Due to these assaults, the Ukrainian military has already lost about half of the territory they previously occupied.
"The goal might be to put Russian troops in a defensive position to prevent them from escalating their offensive actions," suggested The Economist editor Shashank Joshi.
At the same time, experts believe that this attack could be part of a more complex strategy, where Ukraine is preparing positions for future negotiations once Donald Trump officially takes office as President of the United States.
"I think we can expect surprises up until January 20. If you look at the northeast of Ukraine, the front is not fully secured by the Russian side. There are certain areas that can be utilized for further advancement to achieve maximum success before potential negotiations," concluded Reisner.
Source: dw.