Moscow has accused the Ukrainian military of attempting a new incursion into Russia’s borderlands, this time in the western part of the Belgorod region, supposedly to spoil Tuesday’s negotiations between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.
The Russian Defense Ministry claims that Ukrainian forces tried but failed to break through toward the towns of Demidovka and Prilesye, supposedly launching five attacks throughout the day. Russian military officials estimate that roughly 200 Ukrainian troops participated in the operation, though none reportedly managed to set foot inside the Belgorod region.
Russia’s armed forces also say they carried out a series of air and missile strikes on “exposed troop concentrations” of Ukrainian reserves within an 8–10-kilometer (5–6.2-mile) zone in Ukraine’s Sumy region.
Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Tuesday morning that the Ukrainian military was shelling the border-adjacent Krasnoyaruzhsky district. Russian military correspondents later reported that Ukraine had launched “offensive actions” toward Belgorod, involving tanks and infantry. By the evening, Gladkov said the situation in Krasnoyaruzhsky district “remains difficult.” Amid continued Ukrainian artillery fire, one territorial defense fighter was wounded near the town of Repyakhovka, while a member of the “Orlan” unit was reportedly killed in Krasnaya Yaruga, some 25 kilometers from the border.
At the time of this writing, Ukrainian military officials have not commented on the situation in the Belgorod region. In its Monday evening briefing, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said only that the situation at the border (between Ukraine’s Sumy region and Russia’s Kursk region) remained under Ukrainian control, denying reports of Russian troops advancing into the Sumy region.
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