President Vladimir Putin has ordered his army to “dislodge” Ukrainian troops who have entered Russian territory, as authorities reported that over 120,000 people have been evacuated from the fighting.
Kyiv launched a surprise offensive into Russia’s western Kursk region last Tuesday, capturing over two dozen settlements in the most significant cross-border attack on Russian soil since World War II.
“One of the obvious goals of the enemy is to sow discord, strife, intimidate people, and destroy the unity and cohesion of Russian society,” Putin said during a televised meeting with government officials.
“The main task is, of course, for the Defence Ministry to dislodge the enemy from our territories,” he added.
Approximately 121,000 people have fled the Kursk region since the fighting began, which has resulted in at least 12 civilian deaths and 121 injuries, regional governor Alexei Smirnov informed the meeting with Putin.
Authorities in Kursk announced on Monday that they were expanding their evacuation area to include the Belovsky district, home to around 14,000 residents. The neighbouring Belgorod region also reported that it was evacuating its border district of Krasnoyaruzhsky.
Ukraine has penetrated the region by at least 12 kilometres (seven miles) and has captured 28 towns and villages, with the new front stretching 40 kilometres long, Smirnov said.
A senior Ukrainian official told AFP over the weekend that the operation aimed to stretch Russian troops and destabilise the country after months of slow Russian advances across the frontline.
Putin stated that Russia would respond by demonstrating “unanimous support for all those in distress” and claimed there had been an increase in men signing up to fight.
“The enemy will receive a worthy response,” he said.
‘Maximum Losses’
The assault seemed to catch the Kremlin off guard. Russia’s army swiftly deployed reserve troops, tanks, aircraft, artillery, and drones in an effort to suppress it.
However, Russia conceded on Sunday that Ukraine had advanced up to 30 kilometres (20 miles) into Russian territory in some areas.
It reported that some forces were near the villages of Tolpino and Obshchy Kolodez, approximately 25 and 30 kilometres from the Russia-Ukraine border, respectively.
A Ukrainian security official told AFP, on condition of anonymity, that “the aim is to stretch the enemy’s positions, inflict maximum losses, and destabilise the situation in Russia as they are unable to protect their own border.”
The Ukrainian official indicated that thousands of Ukrainian troops were involved in the operation.
Russia’s Defence Ministry announced on Monday that its air defence systems had destroyed 18 Ukrainian drones, including 11 over the Kursk region.
‘It’s Scary’
Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry reported on Sunday that over 44,000 residents in the Kursk region had applied for financial assistance, according to TASS news agency.
Russia’s rail operator has organised emergency trains from Kursk to Moscow, approximately 450 kilometres away, for those fleeing.
“It’s scary to have helicopters flying over your head all the time,” said Marina, who declined to give her surname, and who arrived by train in Moscow on Sunday. “When it was possible to leave, I left.”
Across the border in Ukraine’s Sumy region, AFP journalists saw dozens of armoured vehicles marked with a white triangle, an insignia apparently used to identify Ukrainian military hardware deployed in the attack.
At an evacuation centre in the regional capital of Sumy, 70-year-old retired metal worker Mykola, who fled his village of Khotyn, about 10 kilometres from the Russian border, welcomed Ukraine’s push into Russia.
“Let them find out what it’s like,” he told AFP. “They don’t understand what war is. Let them have a taste of it.”
Analysts believe Kyiv may have launched the assault to alleviate pressure on its troops in other parts of the frontline.
However, the Ukrainian official stated: “Their pressure in the east continues; they are not pulling back troops from the area,” although “the intensity of Russian attacks has decreased somewhat.”
The official anticipated that Russia would “eventually” halt the incursion.
Ukraine is preparing for a large-scale retaliatory missile attack, including “on decision-making centres” within Ukraine, the official added.
