Ukraine's operation in Russia's Kursk region slowed down the pace of the enemy forces on the Pokrovsk axis, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.

When asked by a journalist why the occupation forces did not slow down their offensive on the Pokrovsk axis although the Kursk operation has been lasting for three weeks already, he said, "Were there any advances on the Pokrovsk axis before the Kursk operation? Were they faster or slower?"

"I think, they were faster. Are these things connected? I guess they are, but not in a way you suppose," the head of state told a Tuesday press conference in Kyiv.

He also noted that "sometimes, it does not matter whether there are three or five brigades deployed there. The main thing is who exerts pressure on you, what is their number, and what your fighters in some directions are ready to do."

"But you should know: they [the Russian forces] do not retreat there. If they come back, they will be shot dead. I am talking about the Russian army. And they will keep putting on pressure. They need this. Just as the case of Bakhmut. They will sacrifice 50,000-60,000 people there. You will see this. You will see these figures very soon. That is history. Therefore, we cannot just do like this: you [send] 100,000 and we [send] 100,000. We have already had one such operation. I think that’s wrong. I am glad that Commander-in-Chief [of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr] Syrsky thinks so too. Because tricks should be used," Zelenskyy said.

He also underlined that the enemy "has ears everywhere, and not only in our country."