Five months after their shock offensive into Russia, Ukrainian troops are bloodied and demoralized by the rising risk of defeat in Kursk, a region some want to hold at all costs while others question the value of having gone in at all.

(Tribune News Service) — After a surprise offensive earlier this year, Ukraine’s forces have lost about half the territory seized in Russia’s Kursk region and may lose the rest in a matter of months, according to U.S. officials, potentially depriving Kyiv of important leverage for ceasefire talks with Russia.

Exhausted and demoralised Ukrainian troops risk losing much of the territory in Russia's Kursk Oblast that they captured during the lightning-fast August offensive. Source: Associated Press, citing seven Ukrainian soldiers and commanders who spoke on condition of anonymity about the situation on the front line Details: The publication writes that a significant number of Ukrainian units are in a state of exhaustion.