Ukraine And Russia Scramble To Make Territorial Gains In Anticipation That Trump Will Push For Peace Deal

Ukraine and Russia are both vying to make territorial gains ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration and his expected push for a peace deal.

Trump has said on multiple occasions that he would bring a swift end to the war, relying on his relationships with both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin and his ability to negotiate with both. In anticipation that Trump will broker a peace settlement in short order, both Russia and Ukraine are making potential last-ditch efforts to grab territory for the other that they could possibly use as leverage during negotiations, according to The Wall Street Journal.

“They’re assaulting all the time—morning, day, night,” a Ukrainian battalion commander told the WSJ.

One current flashpoint is the Kursk region of Russia, which Ukrainian forces seized part of during an invasion over the summer. Russian forces are desperately vying to take back the territory, according to the WSJ. Moscow has deployed roughly 45,000 troops to the region, and in recent weeks has taken back half of it. North Korea has additionally deployed 10,000 troops to Kursk to aid Russian forces.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has been making use of U.S.-provided long-range missiles to strike targets deep inside Russia, the first time Ukraine has been allowed to do so after two years of war. President Joe Biden’s decision to let Ukraine use the missiles puzzled