Ukraine's forces in the Kursk region repelled the initial phase of an expected Russian counteroffensive, resulting in Moscow suffering a one-day record number of casualties, according to Ukrainian officials.
Roughly 1,950 Russian troops were killed or wounded Monday, The Telegraph reported.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense posted on X video allegedly showing destruction of Russian vehicles.
"The warriors from the 95th Air Assault Brigade repelled a massive russian attack in the Kursk region. Our defenders destroyed 28 units of armored equipment and more than 100 soldiers," the post read.
The long-awaited Kremlin offensive saw Russian units get stopped cold or wiped out, the Kyiv Post reported.
A rare daylight charge by a confirmed 15 late-model BTR-82A armored personnel carriers loaded with infantry drove into a concealed minefield and was destroyed in less than an hour of intense combat, the outlet added.
Anastasiia Blyshchyk, a spokesman for the 47th Separate Mechanized Brigade of Ukraine, said the situation on the frontline in Kursk was difficult but "under control."
Blyshchyk added that Monday was a "dark day for Russian occupation forces" as Ukrainian forces had destroyed 10 of their armored vehicles, The Telegraph reported.
U.S. and NATO intelligence officials have said Russia had assembled between 40,000 and 50,000 men in Kursk region in recent weeks, The New York Times reported Sunday.
The Russian forces, which include North Korean troops, aim to eliminate Ukrainian forces from the region by the end of the year.
Ukraine launched its incursion into Kursk in August, seizing settlements in its first such deployment into Russian territory since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Russia, however, has continued its slow but steady advance across much of eastern Ukraine, where it is capturing village by village in a bid to seize the entire industrialized Donbas region.
In a Kyiv Post comment on X on Tuesday, the outlet said Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for national security adviser, explained to NPR last week how a Trump administration would approach dealing with Ukraine.
"In an interview last week with NPR, incoming National Security Advisor Mike Walz offers a dual strategy of finally allowing Ukraine long range strikes coupled with starving the Russian war machine by actually enforcing sanctions and increasing the US output of US petroleum products," the outlet posted on X.
Reuters contributed to this story.
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