Ukraine Plotted Incursion to Throw Kremlin Off Balance
- Kyiv had weighed shock strike for some time, official says
- Ukraine says it controls 1,000 square kilometers of territory
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Ukraine had been weighing several possibilities for an attack that would shock the leadership in Moscow and put President Vladimir Putin on the backfoot before storming across the border last week, according to a Western official familiar with the planning.
With Ukraine’s military on the defensive and Kremlin forces securing marginal gains this year, a cross-border attack had been weighed for some time before the surprise incursion into Russia’s western Kursk region a week ago, the official said on condition of anonymity.