MOSCOW, August 23. /TASS/. Ukraine’s military is at a loss as to the strategic rationale behind the assault into Russia’s Kursk Region, Ukrainian military officer Dmitry Glushchenko said.

"What goal this is meant to accomplish is unclear. I mean, strategic goals explaining why this [assault into the Kursk Region] was undertaken," he said in an interview with Ukrainian political analyst Yury Romanenko posted on YouTube.

According to the Ukrainian serviceman, the Ukrainian political leadership devised the offensive in order to divert the Ukrainians’ attention from the dire situation on the frontline and in the country’s economy and energy infrastructure. "Everybody [among Kiev’s partner countries] claims that we are mired in corruption here and they refuse to give us money. And what’s worse is there have been very few likes [on social media]," he added.

"And now they [the Kiev regime] are probably reconsidering their strategy. Why did we do this? What was the strategic goal behind it?" Glushchenko wondered.

On August 6, Ukraine launched a major offensive in the borderline Russian region. A federal level emergency has been declared, and air raid sirens have repeatedly rung out there. According to Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, as many as 115,000 people have been evacuated from the most affected border areas. In turn, acting Governor Alexey Smirnov said more than 133,000 people have fled. Temporary accommodations for Kursk Region residents who were forced to leave their homes are available in 29 Russian regions.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Kiev has lost roughly 4,700 troops and 68 tanks since fighting began in the Kursk area. The operation to wipe out Ukrainian formations continues.