- Up to 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers have invaded Russia
Up to 1000 Ukrainian soldiers are reported to have infiltrated the Russian border region in the Kursk area, according to Moscow's Chief of General Staff, Valery Gerasimov. He stated that at least 100 of them have been killed and 215 injured. Gerasimov made these remarks during a video conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which was broadcast on the Kremlin's Telegram news channel. Putin was briefed on the situation in the Kursk region, which is under attack from neighboring Ukraine. No information was provided on Russian casualties.
Gerasimov stated that the Ukrainian advance has been halted and that the operation will be concluded with the defeat of the enemy and the return to the state border. Earlier on Tuesday, the Ministry of Defense in Moscow had claimed that there had been no breakthrough by Ukrainian forces. Now, the military acknowledges that units have entered Russian territory.
Casualties in Russia's border region
Russian military bloggers reported that the advance was continuing and that 11 settlements were under enemy control. This has not been officially confirmed or independently verified. According to official reports, at least 3 people have been killed and more than 20 injured in the fighting that has been ongoing since Tuesday.
Thousands of people are fleeing the shelled settlements, according to Russian authorities. There has been no official response from Kyiv so far. The Ukraine has repeatedly attacked targets in the neighboring country as part of its defensive struggle against the Russian invasion. According to statements from Kyiv, these attacks are usually aimed at disrupting military supplies from Russia. The attacked country has repeatedly emphasized that it is focusing on liberating occupied territories, but not attacking Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Kyiv of a "large-scale provocation." The Ukraine is firing "indiscriminately, with weapons of various kinds, at civilian buildings, residential houses and ambulances," he said at a meeting with government members that was broadcast on television. He also stated that he would consult with the heads of his security services about a response.
The Russian region of Kursk borders directly on the region of Sumy in northeastern Ukraine and has been regularly shelled from Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict in February 2022.
Evacuations also taking place in Ukraine
Meanwhile, Ukraine has also ordered the evacuation of 6,000 people from the border area with Kursk. "I have just signed the order for the forced evacuation of 23 settlements in five communities in the Sumy region," said Regional Governor Volodymyr Artjuch. Also affected are 425 children. The situation in the Sumy region is "very tense."
Kyiv has not yet commented on the current events in the border area. However, the news agency AFP learned from circles of the Ukrainian intelligence service SBU that a helicopter with a drone was shot down over the Kursk region on Tuesday.
Also, Ukrainian President's advisor Mychailo Podoliak referred to the attacks in an online media contribution - without explicitly naming them. Moscow has used its "border regions for massive air and artillery attacks unpunished," he wrote in it.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, Ukrainian losses include 260 soldiers and 50 armored vehicles, including seven tanks and eight armored personnel carriers. These figures could not be independently verified.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities also targeted the Russian border regions of Voronezh and Belgorod with drone strikes. In Voronezh, Governor Alexander Gusev reported that buildings and residences were damaged by debris.
The President of the European Parliament, expressing concern over the escalating tensions, urged for a peaceful resolution to the conflict in a statement issued yesterday. In response to the claims of Ukrainian infiltration into the Kursk region, President Putin warned of severe consequences if the attacks on Russian territory continue.
