"This week, work has been completed on the completion and construction of two reinforced defense lines of the Kursk region. <...> The third line will be ready by November 5," he wrote.
According to the head of the region, work on the construction of reinforced defense lines in the Kursk region is being carried out jointly with the Russian Ministry of Defense and the regional border department. "We are ready to repel any encroachment on our territory," the governor added.
As the map shows, Kursk is north of Ukraine, and north even of Russian ally Belorussia.
Two points bear comment: 1) Layered defenses require a measure of troops, which takes a portion of Putin's 300,000 conscripts away from the Kherson and Kharkiv fronts in Ukraine; and 2) preparing beefed up defenses far away from the current front lines suggests Russia expects Ukraine to retake Kherson, and ultimately eject Russian forces from Ukraine proper.
The entire tenor of Putin's war could turn on what happens in Kherson over the next few weeks.
Although if Russia is anticipating a replay of the Battle of Kursk, the end result would be the elimination of the Russian Army. Marshall Zhukov's forces at Kursk suffered over 800,000 casualties in that battle.
Even with Putin's partial mobilization casualties on that scale would end every regular military formation Russia has anywhere near the Ukrainian theater of operations.
Well, there was a HUGE tank battle there during WWII...?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kursk
There is that.
Although if Russia is anticipating a replay of the Battle of Kursk, the end result would be the elimination of the Russian Army. Marshall Zhukov's forces at Kursk suffered over 800,000 casualties in that battle.
Even with Putin's partial mobilization casualties on that scale would end every regular military formation Russia has anywhere near the Ukrainian theater of operations.