Cross-border attack by Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk region

Russia has reported that approximately 300 Ukrainian soldiers launched a cross-border attack into a previously quiet part of the front on Tuesday, leading to reports of fighting as deep as 6 miles inside Russia.

Details of incursion

Moscow’s Ministry of Defence stated late Tuesday that up to “300 Ukrainian militants” from Ukraine’s 22nd mechanized brigade initiated the attack at 8 a.m., supported by “11 tanks and more than 20 armored fighting vehicles.”

The fighting took place throughout the day between the border villages of Nikolayevo-Daryino and Oleshnya in the Kursk region, extending to the fringes of Sudzha, 6 miles from the frontline. Overhead photographs showed strikes on Russian trailers loaded with tanks.

Although Russia claimed it had repelled the incursion, reports from Russian military bloggers and social media imagery indicated that the Ukrainian attack was substantial.

Rybar, a popular Russian military blogger, mentioned that the situation in the Kursk region remained tense with battles ongoing in border districts.

“Judging by the latest footage, Ukrainian formations have managed to advance,” the blogger wrote, contrasting with the Defence Ministry’s initial statement.

Russian and Ukrainian responses

The Russian Defence Ministry asserted, “After suffering losses, the Ukrainian sabotage group retreated to its territory, while some fighters tried to gain a foothold directly on the territory adjacent to the state border, where they were blocked by Russian army units.”

Ukraine’s political leaders and the Ministry of Defence did not immediately comment, but Andrii Kovalenko, a junior official from Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, acknowledged the attack and disputed Russia’s control over the border.

“Russian soldiers are lying about the controllability of the situation in the Kursk region. Russia does not control the border,” he said.

Casualties, military response

The purpose of the attack could be to divert Russian forces to defend a largely inactive part of the frontline since spring 2022 and boost morale at home. However, some critics in Ukraine argue that such assaults have no long-term military benefit. Previous attacks by anti-Kremlin groups from Ukraine into the Belgorod and Kursk regions in March were repelled without strategic gains.

Earlier on Tuesday, Alexei Smirnov, acting governor of the Kursk region, stated that Russian soldiers and Federal Securtiy Services (FSB) forces repelled the Ukrainian attack, resulting in three Russian civilian deaths and 18 injuries.

Russia claimed it launched airstrikes on Ukrainian armor, moved reserve forces to reinforce the frontline, and destroyed 16 armored units, including six tanks. However, losses on either side could not be verified, and initial battlefield casualty reports are often exaggerated. There are also footage of a first-person view drone striking (and downing high likely) a Russian Mi-28 “Havoc” attack helicopter over Kursk Oblast in Russia.