What to remember from Thursday, August 15

Both kyiv and Moscow claim to have regained ground in the border region of Kursk, where the Ukrainian army has been carrying out an incursion since August 6.

Ukraine claimed, on Thursday, August 15, new advances in its offensive in the Russian region of Kursk, where Russia claims for its part to have retaken a village. This, while maintaining its pressure further south on the Donbass front. Here is what to remember from the day.

kyiv claims to control 82 localities in Kursk region

Ukraine controls 82 settlements and 1,150 square kilometers in the Kursk border region, Ukrainian army commander Oleksandr Syrsky said. “In total, since the start of operations in the Kursk region, our troops have advanced 35 kilometers in depth”the officer assured. President Volodymyr Zelensky, for his part, announced that his forces had “released” completely the Russian city of Sudja, a town of 5,500 inhabitants which represents the main conquest of the Ukrainian forces in the framework of this offensive.

Russian military says it has retaken village in Kursk region

The forces have “regained control of the village of Kroupets”the Russian military claimed in a statement, saying “keep pushing back” Ukrainian assaults in this border region. This is the first time since August 6 that Russian troops say they have retaken one of the villages that came under Ukrainian control.

Five Ukrainians killed in Russian strikes

Five civilians have died in Russian attacks in three regions of southern and eastern Ukraine, local authorities said. Two people were killed in an airstrike in the northeastern Kharkiv region and another in an artillery strike in the eastern Donetsk region, the sources said. In the southern Kherson region, one man was killed in a drone strike and another died overnight in hospital after being injured in a separate strike the previous day.

Ukraine denies involvement in Nord Stream gas pipeline sabotage

The Ukrainian presidency called it “absolute nonsense” his involvement in the sabotage in September 2022 of the Russian Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, following press reports to this effect. Wall Street Journal claimed that former Ukrainian chief of staff Valery Zaluzhny oversaw the plan to blow up the pipelines that were still supplying Europe with Russian gas at that time, despite the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops from February 24, 2022.

“These actions had no practical benefit for Ukraine”presidential adviser Mykhailo Podoliak defended himself to AFP, in reaction to the article in the American daily. He noted that Ukraine’s involvement in the sabotage would have “could put an end to” to the assistance provided to kyiv by the “European partners”. He did, however, describe it as“obvious” Moscow’s motives in destroying the gas pipeline.