Success of Ukraine's invasion of Russia: secrecy, speed and electronic muffling - WSJ

The preparation for the operation itself began in early summer, when the Armed Forces with the help of UAV attacked infrastructure in Kursk, from power grids to ammunition and fuel warehouses, as well as surveillance equipment. In addition, raids were conducted across the border to find weak places in Russian defense and intelligence. Two weeks before the operation, Ukrainian drones destroyed Russian observation systems on the border post on the road to Kursk.

Ukraine, as it is noted, was preparing for the attack, removing soldiers and equipment from brigades throughout the country, and relocating them to forests and villages near the border. At the same time, this plan was shrouded in such secrecy that many of those who were involved in the event on the "that side" were not known about it until the mission began . . .

When the Ukrainian assault groups passed over the border early in the morning, early in the morning Russian units found that their UAVs and communication systems did not work. According to WSJ, units of electronic struggle of the LSU entered the Russian territory before the main mechanized assault forces to suppress Russian equipment and prevent the Russian troops to determine Ukrainian positions or intercept their messages.

This deployment and created a "protective cocoon" around the advancing Ukrainian assault forces. If in the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, Western military equipment became unusable on the battlefield due to dense mine fields and drone attacks, then in the Kursk region the assault brigades equipped with American armored vehicles Stryker and German Marder, rushed by Russian roads, without meeting resistance.

In just a few hours, the assault moves moved to many kilometers deep into the Russian territory. They were followed by brigades on infantry tanks and combat vehicles, cleaning the territory and capturing prisoners. Now Ukraine is trying to occupy as many Russian settlements as possible and complicate the reinforcement of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, causing strokes on railway units and bridges.

At the same time, according to WSJ, more than a week of the continued invasion of the Armed Forces, according to analysts, dozens of units of armored vehicles have already lost. Human losses are unclear, but the serviceman of the 44th brigade, with whom journalists of the publication communicated, said they were much lower than during the counter-offensive of 2023.

Recall that The Washington Post wrote that Ukraine and Russia were going to send their delegations to Qatar for negotiations on stopping blows on energy facilities and infrastructure on both sides. However, the plans were torn due to an unexpected invasion of the Armed Forces into the Kursk region.