Ukraine Admits Raid into Russia’s Kursk as Putin Hits Emergency Button

On Thursday (Aug 8), Ukraine publicly acknowledged for the first time its attack on Russia’s Kursk region as fighting in the area entered its third day. Earlier reports suggested that Ukrainian forces were targeting a village located 20 kilometers inside Russian territory. Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, justified the attack by stating that the “root cause of any escalation” was the “unequivocal aggression” displayed by Russia.

“War is war, with its own rules, where the aggressor inevitably reaps corresponding outcomes,” Podolyak added.

Russia declared an emergency in response
Russian military bloggers reported ongoing clashes along the highway east of Korenevo, about 13 miles north of the border. They claimed Ukrainian forces had effectively taken control of the western part of Sudzha, approximately six miles inside Russian territory.

Moscow declared a state of emergency in the Kursk region, leading to the evacuation of more than 3,000 people. Acting Deputy Governor Andrei Belostotsky confirmed that at least four people had died in the offensive.

Earlier, Russia had claimed that around 1,000 Ukrainian troops entered its territory on Tuesday, supported by tanks and armored vehicles. According to Russia’s defense ministry on Telegram, Ukraine’s losses since the start of the Kursk operation included 660 troops and 82 armored vehicles, among them “eight tanks, 12 armored personnel carriers, six infantry fighting vehicles, 55 armored fighting vehicles, and one counter obstacle vehicle.”

Was Russia caught off guard?
On Thursday, Russia claimed it was continuing to “destroy armed formations” from Ukraine, but it appeared the Kremlin may have been caught off guard by the sudden offensive.

On Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin accused Kyiv of conducting “yet another large-scale provocation” at the Russian border.

Reportedly, Russia employed air and missile strikes along with artillery to repel the significant military offensive. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of Russia’s general staff, stated that the offensive was successfully halted by soldiers.

“The enemy’s advance deep into territory in the Kursk direction was stopped by the actions of the units covering the state border together with border guards and reinforcement units, with air strikes, missile and artillery fire,” Gerasimov said in a televised address.