Quote:An intelligence source says that Ukraine has been reassured by the early successes of the operation, which, he claims, has thrown Russia into paralysis. Russia is now using elite soldiers in dangerous ways to stem the advance, he says. Ukraine on the other hand is only advancing where it made sense. “The Russians are making very stupid errors and it’s all down to their corrupt top-down management which prioritises good news over the truth.” The Kursk incursion, which follows reverses in Kyiv, Kharkiv region and Kherson, represents the “fourth big failure” of Russia’s generals in mechanised, manoeuvre warfare. “We’ve now got options and the Russians know it.”
Previous cross-border raids were mostly led by Ukraine’s military intelligence. On this occasion, the operation is more closely associated with Ukraine’s much-criticised new commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky, with regular army units joining these raids for the first time. With stakes this high, General Syrsky’s career may well be riding on it. Reports from frontline Ukrainian hospitals suggest that casualty figures are already mounting. People may still question whether it was wise to devote so many troops to the incursion while critical frontlines are thin. The answer will depend on the operation’s success.
https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/08...nto-russia