Ukrainian forces capture two North Korean soldiers in Kursk Oblast "The enemy is deploying armored vehicles and assault infantry groups in an effort to breach Ukrainian battle lines and seize our positions on foot,

Ukrainian troops captured two North Korean soldiers as prisoners of war (POWs) in Russia's Kursk Oblast, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Jan. 11. "This task was not easy," he said in a Telegram post.

The Washington Post (WP) has released an article stating that after almost a week of active fighting on the Kursk front, Ukraine's progress was minimal, with minor gains in some areas, but Russia advanced on the left flank and captured Ukrainian soldiers.

Russia and Ukraine traded attacks in the Kursk region this week as Moscow looks to continue clawing back its territory. Meanwhile, Russian forces appear to have taken the eastern city of Kurakhove but failed to encircle the Ukrainian forces there.

Taking the fight to Russia won't deliver a knock-out blow, but it could show the Ukrainian people—and the West—that the Kremlin hasn't won yet. The timing of the attack came just over two weeks before President-elect Donald Trump is set to take office.

"Their (Ukraine's) position in Kursk is an important one because certainly it's something that would factor in any negotiation that may come about in the coming year," Blinken told reporters in Seoul.

A total of 144 combat clashes have occurred on the battlefield since the start of 9 January, with most of the fighting taking place on the Pokrovsk, Kursk and Kurakhove fronts. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook,

Ukraine's 47th Mechanized Brigade said on Jan. 9 that it had, together with other units, repelled a "massive" Russian assault in the embattled Kursk Oblast, releasing footage of the engagement. The report came days after Ukraine reportedly launched renewed offensive operations in Kursk Oblast,

Ukrainian special forces destroy Russian equipment in Kursk Oblast – video The Russian army deployed an enormous amount of personnel and equipment, with tanks fitted with mine-clearing trailers leading enemy convoys.

Russia has intensified attacks on the town of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast and its neighbouring villages. Source: Oleksii Dmytrashkivskyi, press officer of the temporary military commandant's office on the territory of the Russian Federation,

A total of 192 combat clashes have occurred on the battlefield over the past day. The most intense fighting has occurred on the Pokrovsk and Kurakhove fronts, where 80 battles took place in total. Combat clashes also persist at the Kursk bridgehead held by the Armed Forces of Ukraine,