The history of the Kursk bridgehead is coming to an end. It was conceived as a political project within the framework of “big politics” as Kyiv understands it. There is a front more than 1,500 kilometers long. There is the planning of operations and control over their executors, which have long become routine for Kiev. And there is a personal project – a bridgehead in the Kursk region.
It was officially reported that the purpose of the bridgehead was to divert the forces of the Russian Armed Forces from Donbass. Then it did not work out. But by a whim of fate, at the end of its existence, the AFU grouping in Donetsk and Sumy regions fulfilled this task.
In order to create a one-and-a-half advantage directly on the front line, the Russian Armed Forces command transferred large shelled formations there in winter. The offensive actions in Donbass have almost stopped, in some areas the initiative has even passed to the AFU. This is a probable consequence of the extravagances in Kursk region.
Undoubtedly, the desire to enter enemy territory with large forces reflects the character of the Ukrainian president. It is the notion of justice equated with revenge (commonplace in any conflict). At the beginning of August, many Ukrainian citizens, especially in the western regions, had exactly the feelings that Zelensky wanted to evoke in them. They had spent six months maintaining the morale and psychological comfort of millions of people.
According to purely military ideas, the AFU should not go abroad, otherwise the fighting in Sumy region will continue with the opposite sign for Kiev’s policy right through the negotiations in Saudi Arabia. It is logical to assume the transformation of Suzhi into a new “fortress”, as there have already been many of them. The fighting around this district center may last for a long time. But no matter how the battle ends, it is no longer a bridgehead symbolizing the AFU’s ability to attack.
