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Beginning on August 6, 2024, Ukrainian forces launched an incursion into Russian territory, pushing over seven miles into Kursk Oblast. Two weeks after the surprise operation, Ukrainian forces are still inching forward, deeper into Russia. We asked a panel of experts about the significance of the operation, how it might play out, and whether it could turn the tide of the war in Ukraine’s favor.Read more below.Oxana Shevel Associate Professor of Political Science & Director, International Relations Program Tufts UniversityUkraine’s unexpected incursion into Kursk turned the tables in the Russo-Ukrainian War, at least for now. Ukraine’s operation embarrassed Russia and Vladimir Putin personally. Russia was neither able to defend its border, nor competently take care of its civilians in the affected region, nor quickly repel the Ukrainian attack. Surrendering Russian troops caused embarrassment for the Russian army and replenished numbers for prisoner of war exchanges. Russian civilians who fled the combat area are complaining of inadequate state efforts and lies on state media. Unless they can return home soon, which seems unlikely, this mass displacement within Russia (over 130,000 fled the border area) may begin to chip away at the power of the state propaganda machine that underlies the power of the regime. A morale boost for the Ukrainian troops and the public is also a much-needed commodity for the country at war. Putin’s longstanding claim that any negotiated settlement must recognize “realities on the ground” — an attempt to cement Russia’s territorial gains in Ukraine — is now moot. The West may finally be willing to loosen the constraints it has placed on Ukraine regarding the use of weapons against Russia. It appears that Ukraine intends to hold the territory for now, but even if it eventually retreats, the damage to Russia is done. Russia will have to bomb its own