What does Ukraine do with seized territory now?published at 17:24 British Summer Time 14 August

17:24 BST 14 August

Jonathan Beale
Defence correspondent

It’s still not clear how long Ukraine will try to hold on to its territorial gains – whether it wants to use it as some kind of bargaining chip for any potential peace talks in the future.

But Justin Crump, a former British Army Officer, says holding on to territory could prove less costly than taking ground, dependent on how Russia reacts. The evidence so far suggests that Russia views this as an incursion, rather than an invasion and is still more focussed on keeping up its grinding offensive in Eastern Ukraine.

What’s happened in Kursk is a symbolic rather than a decisive blow for President Putin.

The greatest threat to Ukrainian forces now is not having enough troops to control all the territory it’s seized -making them more vulnerable to infiltration, ambushes and sabotage.

It’s still not clear how many Ukrainian troops have been involved in this operation, but Crump estimates it’s a well-trained force of between six to 18,000.

Russian airstrikes will also be a concern. But Ukraine’s raiding forces appear to have been prepared for that – already claiming to have shot down a number Russian helicopters and jets.

This incursion will not be enough to create panic in the Kremlin, but it’s already extracting a toll.

Ukraine's incursion is likely about politics rather than a military goalpublished at 17:20 British Summer Time 14 August

17:20 BST 14 August

Jonathan Beale
Defence correspondent

The military theorist Carl Von Klausewitz described war as a continuation of politics by other means.

And Ukraine’s surprise incursion into Russia is likely to be more about politics, than any specific military objective.

Justin Crump, a former British Army Officer and head of the strategic risk consultancy Sibylline, describes the latest Ukrainian offensive as a gamble driven by the need to show the country is still in the fight, after a year of military setbacks.

He says President Zelensky needed to give his war-weary population a win, and to show his western backers Ukraine can still inflict pain on Russia. Time is not on Ukraine’s side with limited resources and western support less certain the longer the war drags on.

Could this offensive sway the dynamics of the war in Kyiv’s favour?

The Global Podcast's Sumi Somaskanda has been speaking to BBC Monitoring’s Russia Editor Vitaly Shevchenko and his colleague Francis Scarr about what the offensive could mean for the future of the war, and how Ukraine might capitalise on its gains.

Shevchenko says Ukraine's incursion is a "huge gamble", adding that Ukrainian soldiers in south-eastern Ukraine might be wondering what Western equipment is doing in the Russian city of Kursk when they need it.

• Click here to listen to The Global Story's latest episode.

Ukraine’s bold move restores lost confidencepublished at 16:53 British Summer Time 14 August

16:53 BST 14 August

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent

Ukraine’s surprise cross-border incursion has gone some way towards restoring Western confidence in its land warfare capabilities.

For months the narrative has been fairly depressing for Ukraine and its allies: a slow, incremental Russian advance in the Donbas, a relentless bombardment of its cities by Russian drones and missiles, a looming uncertainty over a possible second Trump presidency and a loss of US military aid.

True, Ukraine has successfully driven the Russian navy out of the northwest corner of the Black Sea.

It has also shown it can hit targets like distant airfields and ammo depots deep within Russia.

But the failure of Ukraine’s summer offensive last year led many to conclude that on land at least, Ukraine was ultimately on a losing trajectory.

We still don’t know of course, how this incursion will end. For Putin and the Kremlin, it is certainly intolerable and they will be in no mood to make concessions to Kyiv.

But for now, Ukraine has shown itself more than capable of managing "combined arms warfare" – using all the elements like tanks, artillery, air defence etc – drawing praise from numerous western military experts.

A former advisor to Ukraine's Ministry of Defence says he doesn't think Russia is able to "escalate beyond the point that we've seen so far" following Ukrainian troops entering Russian territory.

Speaking to our colleagues on the BBC News Channel from Kyiv, Alexander Khara says he's not expecting Russia to do anything that it hasn't done since 2022.

Khara adds that he doesn't think there'll be any cases of "deliberate pain and deliberate damage" to Russian civilians by Ukrainian soldiers, but he adds that he expects Russians to "behave brutally".

"It’s Putin who is to blame for the war in general and for the Ukrainian move to incur into the Russian territory," he says.

"We want to survive, it’s a struggle for our existence, and we’re trying to do whatever is possible to make it through, and to deter Russia from further annexation of Ukrainian territory”.

On Monday, Ukraine's top military commander Oleksandr Syrskyi said the country's forces had taken control of around 1,000 sq km (386 sq miles) of Russian territory during its Kursk incursion.

The figure has been met with scepticism by some experts, with analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) saying that Ukrainian forces have advanced "roughly 800 sq km" - although the ISW stressed they were not certain Ukraine is in full control of all this territory.

The open-source online Ukrainian analytics group Deep State said on Monday that 800 sq km of Russian territory was under Ukrainian control and the situation in a further 230 sq km of land within Russia's territory was unknown.

Meanwhile, Russia is thought to have taken control of an additional 1,175 sq km of Ukrainian territory between January and July this year, according to the ISW report., external

If you'd like to know more about the situation on the ground, our Visual Journalism Team has been tracking recent significant advancements in the war in maps.

We're getting more reports on what's happening on the ground in Russia as Kyiv pushes on with its offensive in Kursk. Here's the latest:

• The governor of Belgorod Vyacheslav Gladkov says in a Telegram post that drone attacks in the Shebekinsky district hit a bus and a private plot, injuring two people
• Russia's state Tass news agency reports that the acting governor of the Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, has said that a missile warning signal has now been cancelled in the region. He earlier warned residents to take shelter after sounding an alert siren
• Ukraine says its army will allow the evacuation of civilians from Russia's Kursk region and admit international humanitarian organisations to the area
• Ukraine's commander-in-chief has claimed that Ukrainian troops now fully control the Russian border town of Sudzha, though the BBC is unable to independently verify this

Image source, EPA

Latvia's Foreign Minister Baiba Braze defended Ukraine's incursion into Russia, adding that Kyiv "has the right" to use weapons supplied by Nato.

Latvia is one of Ukraine's staunchest Nato allies and gives 2.25% of its GDP in military aid every year.

Braze remarks come as Russian President Vladimir Putin previously described the use of Nato weapons on Russian territory as a "red line".

"They are Ukrainian weapons," Braze said in an interview with the BBC's Newshour programme, adding that "a consultation among legal experts within Nato countries" has concluded that "the right to self defence also covers the right to counter attack."

Braze dismissed claims from Russian officials that civilians are being killed by Ukrainian forces as "propaganda".

"It has been very clear from Ukrainian communication from the first moment that their attacks are against military objects," she said.

Jen Monaghan
BBC Monitoring

The Ukrainian incursion continues to be a top story on Russian state-controlled TV - although actual details remain thin on the ground.

Maj Gen Apti Alaudinov, commander of Chechnya's Akhmat special forces unit, attempts to calm Channel One viewers' nerves, telling them not to listen to certain bloggers spreading "panic".

Alaudinov concedes that Ukrainian troops have managed to take a certain number of settlements in Kursk, but adds that Russian forces have almost "completely blocked" their further advance.

"Isolated" Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups are meanwhile being monitored by the Russian side, he claims.

Alaudinov was even more defiant in comments aired on state Rossiya 1's 60 Minutes talk show. "We've already sunk our teeth in, and it's unlikely that we'll let the enemy go until we completely rip out its Adam's apple," he said.

Steve Rosenberg
BBC Russia editor

Image source, Reuters

During the past two-and-a-half years there have been several "watershed" moments that many have thought would be potentially damaging for President Vladimir Putin.

There was the sinking of the Moskva flagship of the Black Sea fleet; the declaration of partial mobilisation, which sparked alarm in Russian society; and then last year the armed mutiny, when mercenaries marched on Moscow.

Putin got through all of that, and he would be confident, I think, that he will get through this latest challenge as well.

But unlike the mutiny, which lasted a day, we are now in day nine of Ukraine’s incursion into Russia and Putin will be very keen to end this as soon as possible, before it damages him politically.

He has styled himself over the past 25 years as "Mr Security" - as the only man in Russia who can make people feel safe and secure.

His so-called special military operation was, on paper, designed to boost Russia’s national security but two and a half years later there's more Nato on Russia’s borders, almost daily drone attacks on a string of Russian towns, and now you have Ukrainian soldiers in Russia seizing territory.

More now on Ukraine's plans in Russia's Kursk region - and President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is considering creating "military commandant's offices" in the region, "if necessary".

In a meeting he held with government officials earlier today, Zelensky says they spoke about key issues for the area since Ukraine's incursion - namely security and humanitarian aid.

In a post shared on Facebook, external, Zelensky stresses that "Ukraine is defending itself and the lives of its people" but it will strictly follow international law.

Ukraine says it is creating a "security zone" in Russia's Kursk region - in a bid to protect their own border areas.

The Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk outlined her plan in a post on Telegram, external.

She says Ukraine will organise humanitarian aid for Russian civilians in the security zone area, and also open evacuation corridors towards Russia and also towards Ukraine.

Image source, Reuters

President Putin "is in absolute shock" following Ukraine's incursion, a former Russian prime minister and Putin critic has told the BBC's World at One programme.

Mikhail Kasyanov says that it is "a serious psychological blow" to Putin.

Kasyanov served between 2000 and 2004 while Putin was president and he now leads the opposition People's Freedom party from Latvia.

Putin may respond by "bombing one or another city, or something painful for Ukrainians," Kasyanov says.

Will Vernon
Reporting from London

The lightning Ukrainian offensive is now in its ninth day, and Russia is not only struggling to push Ukraine back, but appears incapable of even stopping the advance.

State TV shows pictures of Russian tanks being loaded up to be sent to Kursk region. But analysts say the Russian military doesn’t have sufficient reserves for the operation. Mothers of Russian conscript soldiers tell journalists their young sons will soon be sent to the region - hardly the elite force necessary for repelling battle-hardened Ukrainian troops.

Over the past few months, Moscow has been carrying out its own offensive in eastern Ukraine, throwing waves of troops against the Ukrainian defensive lines in order to capture a few kilometres of territory. The UK Ministry of Defence said Russia lost 70,000 men in just two months - an average of around 1,000 per day. Russia, it seems, has few reserves left.

Military experts say Ukraine has better intelligence, including from Western allies, and better trained soldiers. Its command structure is more efficient than Russia’s. Kyiv launched its assault at the weakest point in the Russian lines and its highly agile forces managed to punch deep into Russian territory.

Last year, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner mercenaries mutinied and marched hundreds of kilometres towards Moscow. Then, as now, the Russian military appeared powerless to stop them.

Ukraine's commander-in-chief has claimed that Ukrainian troops now fully control the Russian border town of Sudzha.

In a video shared on Telegram, Oleksandr Syrskyi can be seen telling President Volodymyr Zelensky that Ukrainian forces have now "completed" its "search and destruction" of Russian troops in Suzha, a town within the Kursk region.

The BBC is unable to independently verify this and it is uncertain exactly what proportion of Russia's territory in Kursk has been seized by Kyiv.

However, as we reported a little earlier, a Ukrainian television report filmed inside the Russian town of Sudzha showed Ukrainian soldiers removing a Russian flag from a local school.

It is now more than one week since Ukraine launched its incursion into Kursk, western Russia. Here's the latest:

• Ukraine's top military commander says its forces have captured more than 100 Russian soldiers in Kursk today
• While President Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukrainian forces have moved forward in multiple directions today. It comes as Ukraine claims it controls around 1,000 sq km (386 sq miles) of Russia and 74 towns and villages

• A state of emergency has been declared in a second Russian region - Belgorod - which borders Ukraine. The local governor says the region suffered 23 drone attacks in the past 24 hours
• Russia - which launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 - says the prospect of peace talks are on a "long pause" due to Ukraine's operations inside its territory
• Click here to see the latest developments on the map - our colleagues have been updating their maps throughout today as we get new information

Vitaliy Shevchenko
BBC Monitoring

Image source, 1+1 Ukraine

Ukrainian television has shown a report filmed in the Russian town of Sudzha - a key settlement in Kursk region which is at least partly controlled by Ukrainian forces.

It shows Ukrainian soldiers removing a Russian flag from a local school and throwing it onto the ground.

"Glory to Ukraine!" the soldiers are heard shouting as One Plus One war correspondent Natalia Nahorna reports from the scene.

"Glory to heroes!" she responds, completing the slogan widely used by Ukrainians in this war.

This is the first Ukrainian TV report from a captured Russian town - an extraordinary development almost two-and-a-half years after the start of the full-scale invasion.

Her report also features footage of what Nahorna says is a Russian military convoy destroyed by Ukrainian forces.

She describes damage to Sudzha as “insignificant” and mostly caused by Russian bombs.

"I'm still emotional," she says, smiling, after crossing the border back into Ukraine. "But I'd never heard so many explosions from air-dropped bombs before."

More now from the message just posted on social media by President Volodymyr Zelensky.

He is seen speaking via video with top military commander Oleksandr Syrskyi.

Syrskyi tells the president that Ukrainian forces have today captured more than 100 Russian servicemen in Russia's Kursk region.

"I am grateful to everyone involved," adds Zelensky on X, external. "This will accelerate the return of our guys and girls home."

President Volodymyr Zelensky says that Ukrainian forces are continuing to advance further into Russia's Kursk region.

In a message on social media, the Ukrainian leader says forces have moved forward one to two kilometres in various directions today.

The BBC is unable to independently verify this and it's uncertain exactly how much Russian territory has been seized.

It is not clear who holds the town of Sudzha in Kursk.

Ukraine previously said it had reached the town - and Ukrainian state television aired a report this morning showing troops pulling down a Russian flag from an official building in the town.

But one senior Russian commander - Major General Apti Alaudinov - says the Ukrainian army does not have full control there, Russia's state Tass news agency reports.

He says “the enemy is around and in some parts of the city”, adding that there were active clashes everyday - but Ukraine was not "completely in control of Sudzha".

Tass also reports quotes from the head of the Sudzhansky district (where Sudzha is in) who says there’s a temporary lull in Ukrainian shelling in the area.