The dramatic moment Ukrainian forces smash through the border into Russia has reportedly been caught on camera.
Unverified footage appears to show Ukrainian tanks, a UR-77 mine clearing vehicle and armoured personnel carriers cross the border into Kursk where Vladimir Putin’s troops are said to have waved a white flag of surrender.
Ukrainian troops advanced as far as six miles into Russian territory, according to US-based think tank, the Institute for the Study of War. Russia is believed to have declared a state of emergency in Kursk despite Moscow claiming the incursion had been stopped.
Putin described the incursion as a “large-scale provocation” on Wednesday (August 7). Ukraine’s foray across the border is among the country’s largest since Russia launched its full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.
The move was also unprecedented for its deployment of Ukrainian military units. Kyiv’s aim could be to draw Russian reserves to the region, potentially weakening Moscow’s offensive operations in parts of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region where Russian forces have increased attacks and are advancing towards significant gains.
It may also risk stretching outmanned Ukrainian troops further along the front line, which is more than 620 miles long.
But the daring operation could boost morale in Ukraine at a time when Kyiv’s forces are facing relentless Russian attacks and are expected to face more in the weeks ahead.
Myhailo Podolyak, a top adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said border region attacks will cause Russia to “start to realise the war is slowly creeping inside of Russian territory”. He added: “Will it scare them? Sure!”
Russian forces have swiftly repelled previous cross-border incursions, but not before damage was wrought and the authorities embarrassed.
Responsibility for previous incursions into Russia’s Belgorod and Bryansk regions has been claimed by the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom of Russia Legion, which are made up of Russian citizens who have fought alongside Ukrainian forces.
Some Russian war bloggers who have proved knowledgeable about the war said Ukrainian soldiers were in Kursk.
Rybar, a Telegram channel run by retired Russian Defence Ministry press officer Mikhail Zvinchuk, said Ukrainian troops had seized three settlements in the region and continued to fight their way in.
It also said Ukrainian forces captured the Sudzha gas transit station, about five miles from the border. Russian officials haven’t confirmed the gains.
Another pro-Kremlin military blog, Two Majors, claimed Ukrainian troops had advanced up to nine miles into the region. Neither claim could be independently verified.
The Kursk region’s border with Ukraine is 150 miles long, making it possible for saboteur groups to launch swift incursions and capture some ground before Moscow deploys reinforcements.
Putin met with his top defence and security officials to discuss the “shelling of civilian buildings, residential houses, [and] ambulances with different types of weapons”.
The Russian leader instructed his Cabinet to coordinate assistance to the Kursk region. Russian news agencies reported Army Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov as telling Putin at the meeting via video link that about 100 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed in the battle and more than 200 wounded.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in a statement the Ukrainian shelling killed at least two people and injured 24.
Discussion about this post