"It is possible that the Russian Armed Forces have major command and control problems in the region. They are unable to respond effectively to the actions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and everything they are doing at the moment is rather reactive in nature," said Lt Col. Puusepp at the Estonian Ministry of Defense's weekly Friday press briefing.

"In other words, they are building deep defensive lines and trying to concentrate units against the main lines of attack from the Ukrainian Armed Forces."

Lt Col. Puusepp added that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had been able to successfully conceal their activities and preparations before entering Kursk Oblast, which is why they also managed to catch Russia by surprise.

"The Russian media and Russian social media are constantly talking about imminent counter-attacks, but so far there is no indication that any are taking place on a large scale. And it is not known in which area they might take place," said Lt. Col Puusepp.

The EDF Lt Col. Also said that the main action in Kursk Oblast is currently taking place around the settlement of Sudzha, which is located 44 kilometers north-east of the Ukrainian town of Sumy and around 10 kilometers from the border.

"Based on publicly available map data, the Ukrainian Armed Forces appear to have control of an area of around 500 square kilometers, which is approximately the size of the Estonian municipality of Kose," said Lt Col. Puusepp.

At the same time, he also referred to the fact that on Thursday, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrski said at a meeting chaired by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, that Ukraine controlled 1,150 square kilometers of Russian territory.

Lt Col. Puusepp went on to say that the situation is also tense in Belgorod, which neighbors Kursk Oblast. A regional state of emergency was declared in Belgorod on August 14, before later being upgraded to a federal state of emergency on Thursday, August 15. A state of emergency has been in place in Russia's Kursk Oblast for a week.

Ukraine surprised Russia in Kursk

Lt Col. Puusepp also explained how Ukraine is trying to reduce the Russian Armed Forces' ability to launch aerial attacks by targeting airfields and the aircraft in Kursk, as it is easier to destroy them on the ground than in the air.

"On  August 14, Ukrainian forces attacked four air bases – Borisoglebsk, Voronezh, Savasleyka and Kursk – using long-range attack drones," he said. "In Savasleyka there are MiG-31K fighters, which are used by the Russian Armed Forces to fire Kinzhal missiles at Ukraine. The Russian Federation claims that they shot down up to 110 UAVs (drones - ed.) At the moment there is no information regarding whether any Russian aircraft were damaged in the attack. Technical facilities at Borisoglebsk airfield were hit, though the results of the attack there are also unclear at the moment."

Lt Col. Puusepp pointed out that Ukraine has been constantly asking its Western allies for permission to use their weaponry against Russian airfields. However, the allies have so far not granted Ukraine permission to do so, meaning Ukraine has mainly used long-range attack drones.

"Their main strategy is that they are trying to destroy Russian air assets, ammunition and all supporting infrastructure on the ground, instead of countering the aircraft operating in the air, which would be much more difficult," the EDF Lt Col. explained. 

Ukraine has also used innovative techniques against enemy helicopters in the Kursk Oblast, employing FPV (first-person-view) or rally drones in its attacks to try to hit helicopters while they are in the air.

"Russia is reported to have lost at least one MiG-28 attack helicopter, one MiG-8 combat support and transport helicopter and possibly one Ka-52 attack helicopter in Kursk Oblast due to these kinds of attacks. On top of that, it is possible that another Ka-52 attack helicopter was shot down by a portable air defense system in Kursk Oblast," Lt Col. Puusepp said.

The situation in other frontline areas has remained largely unchanged over the past week, Lt col. Puusepp said. "Daily battles are taking place from Kharkiv to Kherson, and the main activity of the Russian forces continues to be in the Donetsk Oblast in the direction of Pokrovsk, where the offensive is slowly advancing. At the moment, they are approximately 10-15 kilometers from the city," he said.

On August 10, the Ukrainian navy struck an offshore gas platform in the Black Sea, west of the Crimean peninsula, where the Russians have reportedly deployed data-gathering equipment and around 40 fighters. It is not known at the moment what the consequences of that attack will be, Lt Col. Puusepp added.

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