White House confirms redeployment of Russian troops from positions in Ukraine to Kursk region
The White House said that they are observing the deployment of Russian troops from positions in the occupied territory of Ukraine in the direction of the Kursk region of the Russian Federation.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to Voice of America.
"We see that some Russian units have been redirected from operations in and around Ukraine to the Kursk region. But these are only the first reports of what we are seeing. I can't say with certainty how many, or how many more there might be, or what their intentions might be, but we have begun to see some Russian units redeployed to the Kursk region," said White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby.
Kirby did not specify what exactly the objectives of the Russian troops, who are being redeployed from their positions in and around Ukraine to the Kursk region, might be.
"All I can tell you is that we have seen some units redeployed and headed to the area. But it is not clear how many will eventually arrive and what their military mission will be. I know that this answer will not satisfy you very much, but it is honest. We're watching this closely, but we can't say for sure what Putin is going to do," the White House official said.
According to Kirby, because of the Ukrainian operation in Kursk, Putin faced the dilemma of strengthening his defense in the Kursk region.
"Putin and the Russians had to make adjustments. We see signs that they are trying to strengthen themselves in and around Kursk as a result of the Ukrainian operation there. To do this, you need to take assets that were in one place doing one thing and now they need to be directed to another. Making such decisions is definitely a dilemma," he said.
Asked whether Putin might use nuclear weapons in response to the Kursk operation, Kirby said that Putin is concerned, but the United States does not see an increase in nuclear rhetoric from the Kremlin.
"If he's moving troops there, he's concerned to some extent about what's going on. I don't know if it qualifies as desperation or not, but he is definitely reacting, at least in some way, to what is happening in the Kursk region. But we haven't seen or heard any escalating rhetoric, especially about nuclear weapons, in recent days," Kirby said.
In addition, according to Kirby, the United States has no reason to change its calculations or position of strategic deterrence on nuclear threats today.
