Russia struggles to repel Ukraine’s deep Kursk incursion

Russia Claims Continued Defense Against Ukrainian Incursion in Kursk Region

Russia’s military asserts that it is “continuing to repel” a Ukrainian cross-border incursion into the western Kursk region, marking the fourth consecutive day of this unexpected assault. According to the Russian defense ministry, Ukraine has reportedly suffered the loss of over 280 military personnel within the last 24 hours, though this claim remains unverified by independent sources.

Reports indicate that Ukrainian forces have advanced more than 10 kilometers (six miles) into Russian territory, representing the deepest cross-border penetration by Kyiv since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. While Ukraine has not officially confirmed this incursion, President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized on Thursday that Moscow must “feel” the repercussions of its invasion.

In a related development, Ukrainian officials reported that at least 14 people were killed and 43 injured in a Russian missile strike on a shopping center in Kostyantynivka, a town near the frontlines in the eastern Donetsk region. The attack also damaged residential buildings, shops, and over a dozen vehicles.

This news emerged shortly after Ukraine’s military claimed to have targeted a military airfield deep inside Russia, destroying a warehouse containing hundreds of glide bombs. The strike on the Lipetsk airbase, located more than 350 kilometers (217 miles) from Ukraine’s border, aligns with Kyiv’s long-standing goal to disrupt Russia’s aerial capabilities. The airfield is known for housing Russia’s Su-34, Su-35, and MiG-31 warplanes.

Lipetsk’s regional authorities have since declared a state of emergency, confirming detonations at an “energy infrastructure facility” and initiating the evacuation of residents from four nearby villages.

On Tuesday, the Russian defense ministry announced that its forces were repelling “an attempt by the Ukrainian armed forces to invade the territory of the Russian Federation,” using aviation and artillery to suppress the Ukrainian advance. However, footage verified by the BBC tells a different story, showing a 15-vehicle Russian convoy damaged, burned, and abandoned on a road near the town of Oktyabr’skoe, approximately 38 kilometers (24 miles) from the border.

The early morning footage also reveals Russian soldiers, some injured and possibly dead, among the wrecked vehicles. In response to the escalating situation, Russia has declared a “federal state of emergency” in the Kursk region.

Russia claims that up to 1,000 Ukrainian troops, supported by tanks and armored vehicles, entered the Kursk region on Tuesday morning. Despite deploying reserve troops and ordering evacuations, Russia has struggled to slow the Ukrainian advance.

This incursion appears to be more than just a probing attack. Hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers with armored vehicles are believed to have penetrated up to 10 kilometers into Russian territory, marking a significant and unexpected assault that has caught both Russia’s military and the Kremlin off guard. For the past 18 months, Moscow has largely controlled the dynamics of this conflict, but now it finds itself on the defensive, facing domestic criticism for its failure to prevent this breach.

Despite concerns in the West about potential escalation, Ukraine’s allies generally agree that this operation falls within Kyiv’s right to defend itself. While President Zelensky has yet to directly address the assault, he stated in a video address on Thursday that “Russia has brought the war to our land and should feel what it has done.”

However, with Ukrainian forces still outnumbered by Russian troops, the situation remains precarious, with the line between a strategic success and a miscalculation being razor-thin.