Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed that Ukrainian troops are active inside Russia’s Belgorod region, as Kyiv seeks to protect towns near the border.
The Ukrainian president described the move as “absolutely justified” as Ukraine looks to stave off Russian advances, as Moscow delays ceasefire negotiations in an apparent effort to seize more land.
After Ukraine’s foothold in Russia’s Kursk region collapsed in dramatic fashion - despite Ukrainian troops remaining in small pockets of the area - Kyiv may be searching to rebuild the leverage it had hoped to keep for any future ceasefire negotiations.
In his nightly video address, Mr Zelensky said Ukraine's top commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, had presented a report "on the front line, our presence in the Kursk region and our presence in the Belgorod region."
"We continue active operations in the enemy's border areas and this is absolutely justified. The war must return to where it came from.
Mr Zelensky added: "Our main objective remains the same: to protect our land and our communities in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions from Russian occupiers."
According to a battlefield map by war analysts the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Ukrainian troops advanced as far as the settlement of Demidovka, around two kilometres from the Ukrainian border.
Russian military bloggers claim that Moscow’s forces have since began pushing back, and have claimed large amounts of land stretching back to the border
But geolocated footage published on April 7 only confirms that Russian troops have pushed back in Demidovka city, while other claims of Russian advances have not been independently verified.
In the Kursk region, where Ukrainian troops had smashed across the border into the biggest attack on Russian territory since the Nazi invasion of 1941, Kyiv’s troops are left with only a sliver of land - having claimed that they held around 1,300 square km (500 square miles) at the peak of the incursion.
The Kursk offensive gave Kyiv one of its biggest advances of the war, and proved a major morale boost for Ukrainian troops, wearied by years of battling Russia’s invasion.
But in March, their hold on Russian land collapsed in the space of just weeks, after Russia successfully cut supply lines between Ukraine proper and its forces in Kursk.
Ukraine still holds small pockets of land in the Kursk region, according to ISW data, including land near the Russian towns of Tyotkino, Vesyoloye and Slobodka-Ivanovka - all of which are to the north and west of the focal point of Ukraine’s initial offensive in Kursk.
In total, Kyiv’s troops still hold a fraction of the Russian land which they held in the latter parts of last year - and have therefore lost a crucial bargaining chip in ceasefire talks.
With morale damaged following the loss of territory in Kursk, a renewed attack on the Belgorod region could hope to boost the spirits of Ukrainian troops once again.
But a failure to seize land will intensify pressure on Mr Zelensky and Ukraine, as the Trump administration continues to push both sides towards accepting a ceasefire - which would include significant territorial concessions by Kyiv.
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