A human rights ombudswoman in Russia, Tatjana Moskalkowa, has announced that Moscow has reached an agreement with Kiev and the Red Cross to evacuate residents of the Russian region of Kursk who are currently in the Ukrainian city of Sumy to Russia. According to Moskalkowa, the agreement was reached with the Red Cross and the Ukrainian side.
Moskalkowa did not provide the number of Russians involved or when the evacuation measures will begin. In November of last year, Moskalkowa reported that 40 civilians from the Kursk region had been found in Sumy, allegedly brought there by Ukrainian soldiers. Later, 46 people returned to Russia as part of agreements with Kiev. At the time, the ombudswoman stated that there were approximately 40,000 reports of missing residents of the Kursk region following the Ukrainian military’s incursion.
On August 6, 2024, Ukrainian troops entered the Kursk region and occupied 28 settlements, where around 2,000 people lived, according to the former governor of the region, Alexei Smirnow. In January 2025, the Russian Defense Ministry reported for the first time that Ukrainian forces had taken control of 1,268 square kilometers. The total area of the Kursk region is 29,900 square kilometers.
As of mid-January, the Russian military reported that 63.2% (801 square kilometers) of the territory occupied by Ukrainian forces had been liberated. More than 20 settlements had been recaptured by the end of January and the Defense Ministry announced the liberation of the village of Swerdlikowo on February 17.