International

Ukraine Crossed Our Territory, Launched Explosives – Russia

Published

5 months ago

Aug 7, 2024.

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Russia has accused Ukrainian forces of crossing into its Kursk region to launch a “massive attack,” attempting to breach Russian defences along the Kursk region’s border.

Russian President Vladimir Putin described the alleged incursion as a “large-scale provocation,” claiming that Kyiv engaged in “indiscriminate shooting from various types of weapons, including missiles, at civilian buildings, residential areas, and ambulances.”

Ukrainian authorities have not commented on the accusations, hence, the claims cannot be independently verified.

The scope of the attack remains unclear, including whether Ukrainian forces captured any settlements or damaged strategic targets. It is also uncertain whether any Ukrainian soldiers remain on Russian territory.

According to Russian officials and military bloggers, Ukrainian forces attacked both land and air near the town of Sudzha, a small town of 5,000 residents located about 6 miles (10 kilometers) from the border.

Geolocated video footage reveals extensive destruction at the border crossing southeast of Sudzha and shelling damage in the town itself. Another video shows Ukrainian forces approaching the town, but it is unclear if they have entered or taken control.

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that around 300 troops, supported by tanks and armoured vehicles, attacked Russian positions near the villages of Nikolayevo-Daryino and Oleshnya.

Initially, the ministry claimed the attack had been repelled, but later revised this to state that “the enemy is being inflicted with fire damage.”

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State news agency RIA Novosti later quoted Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, informing Putin that “the advance of the Ukrainian Armed Forces deep into Russian territory has been stopped.”

Aleksey Smirnov, the acting head of the Kursk region, stated on Wednesday that several thousand people had left the area in the past 24 hours.

The motivation behind a Ukrainian attack of the described scale remains unclear. Ukrainian forces are under increasing pressure along the 600-mile frontline as Moscow continues its slow, grinding offensive.

This attack could be an attempt to divert Russian resources. Additionally, in light of recent negative developments at the frontline, a successful incursion could boost morale among Ukrainian troops and civilians.

Russian military blogger Rybar reported that the Ukrainian military had taken control of a gas transit station near the border, the only one through which Russian gas flows to Ukraine and Europe.

The European Union has imposed broad economic sanctions on Russia, excluding key natural gas imports.

Although the EU has reduced its dependency on Russian gas from 45% of all imports in 2021 to 15% in 2023, some Russian gas still flows to Europe through Ukraine, despite the ongoing war.

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