Russia’s Volunteer Assault Corps entered Sudzha, Kursk region, via gas pipes, while Russian troops surrounded a major bridgehead of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), according to Russian and Ukrainian media.
More than 800 Russian soldiers and volunteers entered Sudzha, sneaking into the town through the empty Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhhorod gas pipeline, according to the press service of the assault corps. The operation to break into the rear of Ukrainian troops began on Saturday, 8 March.
Russian fighters reportedly passed 11-12 kilometres through an underground gas pipeline and came out in the industrial zone of Suzha. The AFU General Staff confirmed that Russian troops had entered the town via the gas pipeline.
Collapse of Ukrainian defence
The encirclement of Sudzha is approaching as Russian troops seized the town of Malaya Loknya. Soldiers hoisted Russian flags over the building of the colony where the 9th regiment had been fighting against the AFU for more than a week.
Meanwhile, the Russian forces moved to an alternate route through Goncharovka and fortified themselves in the village of Melovoy. The AFU attempted to dislodge the Russian units from their positions by transferring reserves, but reportedly failed to shift the front line.
Ukrainian units in the village of Martynovka ended up encircled. Russian media reported the same day about the defeat of a Ukrainian military column around midnight, when a group of AFU vehicles ran into a destroyed bridge.
After the destruction of the bridges over the Loknya and Suzha rivers, the Ukrainian servicemen abandoned their vehicles and crossed the ruins of the bridge. The soldiers remaining in Matrynovka surrendered in the morning. Ukrainians in Kositsa also reportedly surrendered en masse.
Over the course of the day, the Russian Armed Forces advanced approximately 82 kilometres, leaving the AFU with approximately 200-235 km² of controlled territory, where Russian drones are still operating. Attempts by Ukrainian forces to relocate under operational encirclement are resulting in the destruction of their columns by Russian FPV drones and artillery.
At the beginning of Kursk incursion of the AFU in early September 2024, the AFU controlled almost 900 km² of territory. Now, in March 2025, Ukraine has lost two-thirds of the captured land and holds less than 290 km², with troops concentrating at Sudzha.
It is reported that Russian troops have also taken Makhnovka, Mirny and Mikhailovka, practically closing the encirclement around Sudzha. The AFU, including Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi and the General Staff, have not yet made any major decisions, such as withdrawing, counterattacking or sending reserves to support the encircled soldiers.
Sudzha’s encirclement: analysis, implications
The collapse of Ukrainian defences in Sudzha could cause a domino effect on other parts of the front, such as in Ukraine’s Sumy region. The loss of defensive positions there would provide a new direction of attack for Russian forces.
Ukraine could face the need to urgently transfer reserves from other sections of the front, exposing important defence lines and affecting the morale of AFU fighters, leading to an increase in desertions, military experts argue. Ukraine’s failures in the Kursk Region might also trigger new discussions about the futility of further arms deliveries to Kyiv, the analysts added.
Tactical analysis of the Russian Armed Forces’ combat operations in the Sudzha area revealed that the Russian command initially created tension hotspots in the areas of rotation of Ukrainian units.
The approach forced the deployment of reserves, which disrupted logistics and disorganised the AFU’s command and control network. Under conditions of the AFU’s insufficient coordination and poor situational awareness of arriving units, Russian artillery and aviation struck supply routes and areas where Ukrainian soldiers gathered.
As a result, the AFU found itself having to simultaneously control dozens of separate frontline areas and react swiftly to breakthroughs, which led to the dispersal and loss of initiative.
Back in February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Kursk incursion was “a very important operation and you will see when we reach a diplomatic settlement of the conflict” and that Russia “will not be able to dislodge’ the AFU from the Kursk region.
Zelensky also planned to swap part of the captured Kursk region for territories seized by Russian forces in Ukraine. However, the rapid advance of Russian forces in Russia’s Kursk region could deprive the Ukrainian leader of his last negotiating leverage, casting doubt on further military assistance from allies and the expediency of AFU losses in the region.
Previously, Zelensky justified the losses with the captured territories. Now, the Ukrainian authorities and military command are likely to face harsh criticism and growing discontent among the population and the military, experts underscored.
