Russia is attempting to suppress military bloggers from reporting on Ukrainian territorial gains in Kursk Oblast, as Ukrainian forces consolidate their positions southeast of Sudzha, according to a new analysis by the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
ISW reports that several prominent Russian military bloggers revealed on 10 and 11 February that they face potential criminal charges of “discrediting the Russian military” for publishing information about recent Ukrainian advances near Cherkasskaya Konopelka and Fanaseyevka. This crackdown comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signals his intention to use captured Russian territory as leverage in future peace negotiations.
The suppression attempt follows a series of successful Ukrainian strikes that eliminated Russian and North Korean officers in command posts near Sudzha, severely disrupting Russian command and control in the region. Ukrainian forces have since expanded their control southeast of Sudzha, using precision ATACMS strikes and drone warfare to target Russian artillery and supply lines.
The ISW analysis suggests Russia’s information crackdown may be driven by concerns that Western nations could pressure Moscow into trading occupied Ukrainian territories for Russian territory now under Ukrainian control. In an interview with The Guardian on 11 February 2025, Zelenskyy indicated he would consider exchanging captured territory in Russia’s Kursk Oblast for occupied Ukrainian lands during future negotiations.
“We will swap one territory for another. I don’t know, we will see. But all our territories are important, there is no priority,” Zelenskyy stated, though not specifying which Ukrainian territory might be involved in such an exchange.
