Russia may be transferring some units from Donetsk warzone to defend Kursk region - ISW

That’s according to the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank, Ukrinform reports.

Experts note that such irregular battalions are almost never fully manned, and even when fully deployed, they are still made up of relatively small units.

The latest war update states that some elements of these irregular Russian formations likely remain in the axes of Chasiv Yar, Toretsk, and Pokrovsk, which the Russian military considers priority zones. However, according to analysts, the Kremlin and Russia’s military command are unlikely to withdraw entire units that take an active part in hostilities from these priority areas of the front to repel the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk region.

"The Russian military command could also be redeploying units that were previously intended to relieve or reinforce frontline units from rear areas in Donetsk Oblast to Kursk Oblast, and such a redeployment could affect the tempo of Russian offensive operations in the Russian military's assessed priority sectors over time," ISW analysts believe.

At the same time, the ISW says it is not ready yet to assess the pace of Russian operations in the specified sectors.

Experts consider it unlikely that such redeployments will have an immediate impact on the pace of Russia's offensive operations. Moreover, recent reports of Russia’s attempts to make further advances in the direction of Chasiv Yar, Toretsk, and Pokrovsk hardly indicate any redeployment of troops.

"It is not uncommon for Russian offensive operations to stall in one sector before intensifying in another as Russian forces have historically struggled to conduct simultaneous large-scale offensive operations and are prone to conducting offensive operations in ‘pulses’ along different sectors of the front," the summary states.

Analysts believe Russian forces may be entering a brief lull before renewing offensive operations in one of these sectors, and it would likely take several weeks to observe any possible impacts of such redeployments on Russian operations in Donetsk region.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, on August 12, the Tavria grouping of troops recorded the withdrawal of part of the Russian force from the Prydniprovska axis to other areas, including Russia’s Kursk region.