"At the moment the strategic initiative is still in Ukraine's hands thanks to the unprecedented success of the Kursk operation. Currently, as far as we know, Ukraine controls an area of about 900 to 1,300 square kilometers in Kursk Oblast," Lt. Col. Kesselmann said at the Estonian Ministry of Defense's weekly Friday press conference.

According to Lt. Col Kesselmann, the demolition of the bridges on the River Seym is causing a major problem for Russia and has left its armed forces with a serious operational dilemma.

"Either to break out with units that are potentially isolated and thereby cede territory to Ukraine, or try to break into the area with resources and rebuild the links." According to Lt. Col. Kesselmann, neither option would be an easy one.

The EDF Lt. Col. Also noted that Russian Federation units are currently building up their defenses along  the Rylsk-Lgov-Kursk line. "There is probably no reason for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to advance towards this line, because the strategic dilemma that Russia has to cope with at the moment has already been created. This dilemma is as follows: either stop the offensive towards Donetsk Oblast or to accept the Ukrainian presence on the territory of Kursk Oblast," Lt Col Kesselmann said.

"It seems that the regime of the Russian Federation has chosen to ignore the magnitude of the problem the Ukrainian Armed Forces are creating for them in Kursk Oblast," he added.

Lt Col. Kesselmann went on to say that Ukrainian units have forced the Russian Federation to resort to using conscripts. "This is something that the regime of the Russian Federation has claimed from the beginning of the war would not happen," he said.

While at the moment, according to Kesselman, it is known that quite a large number of Russian troops have been captured, this being ignored by the Russian media.

In addition to the Kursk operation, he said, drone strikes deep inside Russia, both against military infrastructure and against strategic installations, have also been carried out.

On August 17, 2024, an oil base was attacked in Rostov Oblast, while airfields in Lipetsk, Voronezh and Nizhny Novgorod regions have all been hit over the last two week. There have also been attempts to attack the Kerch bridge in Crimea over an extended period.

"Yesterday too, near the Crimean peninsula, the Ukrainians managed to sink a RORO-type transport vessel, which was most likely carrying fuel intended to supply Russian Federation units in Crimea," said Lt Col. Kesselmann.

"So, in other words, the Russian Federation has failed to respond adequately to Ukraine's actions in Kursk. Russia continues to put pressure on Ukrainian units in Donetsk Oblast, where the fighting is very intense and things are certainly difficult for the Ukrainians. However, these actions do not seem to be able to enforce the strategic positions that the Russian Federation has stated as its objectives since the beginning of the full-scale invasion," Lt Col Kesselmann said.

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