While the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, and the U.S. continue to argue about and expound on their readiness for negotiations, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are trying to seize the initiative from the Russian army for the first time in months. Ukrainian troops have managed to eliminate the threat to their foothold in Russia’s Kursk region, halt the Russian advance west of Pokrovsk, and re-enter the center of Toretsk, which Russian forces captured just a month ago. However, Russian troops now threaten Ukraine’s main supply route in the Kursk region and continue their offensive in the southern Donbas.