The Kursk operation is not an occupation: Zelenskyy stated the main reason for the offensive on Russian territory

The Ukrainian Defense Forces' operation in Russia's Kursk region is not an occupation, as Ukraine has never had and does not have any intentions of expanding its territory by annexing parts of neighboring countries.

This was stated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a press conference on Tuesday, August 27.

"We are conducting a defensive operation and protection. We are creating buffer zones. On our territory, we are responding with all defensive capabilities and measures, including on Russian territory, to prevent the occupation of our land," the President said.

He added that Russia had already occupied 27% of Ukrainian territory. Therefore, the Ukrainian Defense Forces will continue to do everything possible to prevent the Russians from occupying more.

"You can see that we are not annexing anything to our state, not changing legislation, institutions or anything else. We don't need extra foreign lands. And we don't need foreign citizens either," Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.

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