Kyiv's top general said on Monday that Ukrainian troops fighting in Russia's Kursk region were not at risk of encirclement, despite a recent counteroffensive by Russian forces that has included North Korean troops.
Oleksandr Syrskyi, who said he was visiting the forces fighting in Kursk without specifying whether he had crossed into Russia, made the remark in a statement on social media in which he also said the situation was under control.
"A number of settlements on the border, the names of which appear in the reports of Russian propagandists, no longer actually exist - they have been destroyed by the aggressor's shelling," Syrskyi said.
"Despite the involvement of a significant number of Russian troops in the offensive, reinforced by North Korean infantry, the enemy is suffering significant losses in manpower and equipment," he added.
Russia's defence ministry said on Sunday its forces had recaptured three more settlements in the Kursk region.
