Ukraine’s Aug. 6 incursion into the Kursk region of Russia was a surprise to both Moscow and Washington. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s bold gamble — the first invasion of Russia by foreign forces since World War II — was intended to throw Russian President Vladimir Putin off balance and to demonstrate to Ukraine’s queasy allies what it can do when it has the right equipment. U.S.-provided HIMARS rocket launchers were critical to the advance. Ukraine’s former defence minister, Andriy Zagorodnyuk, told CNN the invasion was the first of several innovative surprises Kyiv was planning.