Ukrainian forces have advanced 800 square kilometers into Russia’s Kursk region, according to Russian sources gathered by the US Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and analyzed today by AFP.

Ukraine claims to control 1,000 square kilometers of Russian territory in this region. After months of retreat on the eastern front, Ukraine on August 6 launched its largest cross-border offensive against Russia since the Russian invasion began in February 2022.

By comparison, Russia has advanced 1,360 square kilometers into Ukrainian territory since the beginning of the year. Ukrainian counter-attacks on Ukrainian territory during the same period only cost it 20 square kilometers, according to the AFP analysis.

The large, failed Ukrainian counteroffensive in the summer of 2023 allowed Kiev to recapture about 250 sq. km in the regions of Donetsk and Zaporizhia.

However, the Russian advance on Ukrainian territory did not stop after the August 6 surprise attack: the Russian army captured another 69 sq. km of land from this day and a total of 111 sq. km from the beginning of the month. To these should be added the 201 sq. km occupied in July.

In total, after the February 24, 2022 invasion, Russia captured 65,891 sq. km of Ukrainian territory (data up to August 12). Together with the annexed Crimea (2014) and the zones of eastern Ukraine already controlled by Moscow before the war, Russia has seized 108,070 sq. km or 18% of Ukraine, taking into account internationally recognized borders.

AFP’s calculations were based on ISW’s daily announcements, which in turn is based on public information from both sides and analysis of satellite images.