This photo published by the Telegram channel of the acting governor of the Kursk region Alexei Smirnov shows the Ukrainian side in the city of Sudja, Kursk region on the border with Ukraine, Tuesday, August 6, 2024 House damaged after shelling.
Kursk Region Governor Telegram Channel (AP)
A state of emergency was declared in Kursk after what Russian authorities said was a rare Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s border region.
Acting regional governor Alexey Smirnov said on Wednesday the “operational situation” in the Kursk border region remained “complex”, a day after Russia said Ukrainian forces had invaded the region.
“In order to eliminate the consequences of enemy forces entering the area, I have decided to declare a state of emergency,” Smirnov said in a Google Translate update on TelegramIt added that drone and missile attacks continued throughout the night.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that 300 Ukrainian soldiers crossed the border in tanks and armored vehicles into the country near the town of Suza, about 400 miles southwest of Moscow. Kursk is located on the border of the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday accused Ukraine of ‘Another massive provocation’ on Russia’s borderFighting continues between Ukrainian troops and Russian troops sent to defend the area.
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed on Wednesday that its forces were using air and missile strikes and artillery to “destroy the armed forces.”
Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov later told Putin that Russian troops had stopped the attack by 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers – a strength estimate that was much higher than the initial number provided by the country’s Defense Ministry.
“The enemy’s moves deep into the territory in the direction of Kursk were prevented by the actions of troops covering the country’s borders, border troops and reinforcements, including air strikes, missiles and artillery fire,” Gerasimov said in televised comments reported by Reuters.
In this group photo published by the Russian state-owned Sputnik News Agency, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Valery Gerasimov can be seen remotely participating in a meeting with the heads of law enforcement agencies to address the situation in Russia in 2024 August 7 in the Kursk region.
Gavriel Grigorov | AFP | Getty Images
Ukrainian authorities have yet to make any public comment on the intrusion. CNBC has asked Ukraine’s Defense Ministry for more information.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters on Wednesday that the United States had not received advance warning of a Ukrainian invasion but did not appear to rule out the possibility of an attack.
“We did not know about the Kursk operation in advance. But it is not unusual for the Ukrainians not to inform us of their specific tactics before executing them. This is a war they are fighting. We equip them. We advise them But when it comes to the day-to-day tactics that they execute, the day-to-day strikes that they take … it’s appropriate for them to make those decisions,” he told a news conference.
On August 7, 2024, in Moscow, Russia, Russian President Vladimir Putin entered the hall when meeting with ministers at his official residence in Novo-Ogaryovo. This week, Putin called on Iran to limit damage to relations with Israel.
Contributors | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Miller said the U.S. was currently “communicating with the Ukrainians regarding this particular operation,” but that it would be inappropriate to comment on “what kind of operation they are conducting and what their goals are.” , not us.
A U.S. State Department spokesman further stated that Putin described the invasion as a “provocation” “given that Russia has violated Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty by illegally occupying Ukrainian territory since 2014, starting with its annexation of Ukraine.” , before the massive invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine’s strategy, Russia’s response
Ukraine’s strategy and reasons for carrying out the border raid remain unclear, although some defense analysts commented that the operation may have been an effort to force Russia to redeploy troops from eastern Ukraine, where Russia’s summer offensive has made progress.
Analysts at the Institute of War Research estimated on Wednesday that Ukrainian forces had confirmed a 10-kilometer (about 6-mile) advance into the Kursk region “in the context of an ongoing mechanized offensive on Russian territory.”
“The scope and location of the Ukrainian advance currently confirmed in the Kursk Oblast (region) indicate that Ukrainian forces have breached at least two Russian defense lines and one stronghold,” ISW said in the analysis.
Screenshots of the video released by the Russian Ministry of Defense showed that on August 7, 2024, the Russian army launched a missile attack on the military equipment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the border area of ​​Russia’s Kursk region.
Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images
ISW said the Kremlin’s response to Ukraine’s offensive in Kursk “has so far been ambivalent, as Russian officials try to balance portraying the action as a clear escalation by Ukraine while avoiding exaggerating its potential impact and risking domestic discontent.” strike a balance between.
“However, the Kremlin appears to have ignored the significance of the attack and viewed it merely as a ‘provocation,’ thereby damaging its reputation among certain groups.”
“ISW” noted that some Russian military bloggers, who are often critical of the war and Russian tactics and strategies, strongly condemned the Russian military command for failing to detect Ukrainian preparations for an attack on Kursk or for blocking this move.
Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council and a prominent hawk, called on Russian troops to suppress Ukrainian forces in Kursk.
We must learn serious lessons from this incident and resolutely defeat and crush the enemy in accordance with the promise made by Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov to the Supreme Commander. He said on Telegramaccording to Google Translate.
