A large group of heavily armed men entered Russian territory from Ukraine and captured several villages. 15 months after the beginning of the war of aggression against the neighboring country, Russia is forced to resist on its own territory. What happened in the Belgorod region? Who is behind this? And who benefits from the campaign? Ntv.de answers the most important questions about the situation in the Russian-Ukrainian border area.
What happened?
A large group of heavily armed soldiers on armored vehicles reportedly entered Russian territory from Ukraine on Monday. There should have been territorial conquests. The attacks were blamed on two Russian-citizen volunteer corps fighting on the Ukrainian side. The “Freedom of Russia” legion said in a statement on Monday that together with the “Russian Volunteer Corps” they had “liberated” several villages not far from the Ukrainian border. The fighters also reached the village of Graiworon, which has around 6,000 inhabitants. It is around 70 kilometers east of the city of Belgorod and around ten kilometers from the Ukrainian border. “It goes on. Russia will be free,” the fighters wrote.
According to their own statements, the Russian armed forces only “blocked and smashed” the attacking troops after more than 30 hours. “More than 70 Ukrainian terrorists, four armored vehicles and five SUVs were destroyed,” said military spokesman Igor Konashenkov.
Shortly before, the telegram channel of the “Free Russia” legion said that the fighters were still in Russia and would continue the “liberation” of the Belgorod region. “The Russian army could do nothing against a group of patriotic volunteers who took up arms and did not hesitate to openly oppose the Moscow regime for a free future of Russia,” the fighters wrote. As a result of the attack on Ukraine, Russia has “no reserves to respond to military crises,” it said. All military personnel are dead, wounded or deployed to the combat zone in Ukraine.
How are the local authorities reacting?
The authorities in Russia spoke of an attack by “representatives of Ukrainian military associations”. According to the governor of the Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, “Ukrainian fighters” opened up a massive mortar and artillery shelling on the town of Graivoron on Monday morning. The place itself and several surrounding villages came under fire. According to the governor, twelve people were injured.
Authorities issued a terror alert in the area. The measure provides for identity checks or the closure of factories that produce dangerous goods such as explosives, radioactive or chemical and biological hazardous substances. According to official information, the authorities had nine villages evacuated because of the fighting. An 81-year-old woman who was traveling on a bus is said to have died during the evacuation. “The causes are being determined,” wrote Gladkow on Telegram. The governor said Tuesday morning that the evacuated citizens should not return home just yet as the situation remains unsafe.
Is Ukraine behind the action?
The government in Kiev denies its involvement in the action. Ukraine is watching what is happening with interest, “but is not directly involved,” tweeted the advisor to the presidential office, Mykhailo Podoliak at the beginning of the week. The Ukrainian military intelligence service pointed out that the “Freedom of Russia” legion and the “Russian Volunteer Corps” consisted exclusively of Russian citizens. Secret service spokesman Andriy Yusov told the public broadcaster Suspilne that they had “started an operation to liberate the Belgorod region from the so-called Putin regime” in order to create a “security strip” to protect the Ukrainian civilian population. This statement suggests that the government in Kiev was at least informed about the plans of the Russian fighters.
“These fighters come from the Ukraine: they are equipped there, they are trained there,” said Russian ntv correspondent Rainer Munz. “Of course, Kiev can say: ‘We will keep our promise, we will not send our troops into Russian territory’. But Ukraine can still fight on Russian territory with the help of these Russian fighters.”
How does the Kremlin react?
According to the Kremlin, the attack proves the need to continue the war against Ukraine. “This confirms once again that Ukrainian fighters are continuing their activities against our country,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Interfax news agency. That requires efforts from Russia. “These efforts will continue, as will the military special operation to prevent such incursions in the future.”
What does the US, Ukraine’s largest military partner, think of this?
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at a briefing Monday the US would ban the use of its weapons on Russian soil. “But I think it’s important to remind the world that Russia started this war and that Russia continues to attack civilians,” Miller said. “Ukraine has the right to choose how to conduct its military operations. The aggressor in this war is Russia,” the US State Department spokesman said.
Is it the first time in this war that Russian territory has been attacked?
Since the start of the war of aggression against Ukraine ordered by Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, there have been repeated attacks on Russian territory. In early March, an incident in a Russian village not far from the Ukrainian border caused a stir. At the time, the Russian domestic secret service FSB reported on skirmishes with alleged Ukrainian sabotage squads in the Russian border region of Bryansk. In a confession video, the “Russian Volunteer Corps” later took responsibility for the attacks.
The head behind the alleged “sabotage action” is said to have been Denis Kapustin, who is also said to have founded the “volunteer corps”. The Russian is considered a neo-Nazi. Ukraine distanced itself from the right-wing extremist and denied any involvement at the time. Only a few fighters are said to have participated in the action at the beginning of March. The recent incident in Belgorod is the most serious attack on Russian territory to date.
What are these groups?
The “Russian Volunteer Corps” (RDK), founded by Kapustin, is a unit of Russian volunteers formed in August 2022 to fight for Ukraine. She is not part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Apparently, Kapustin is not primarily fighting for the liberation of Ukraine, but against Putin. And that’s because, according to Canadian far-right expert Michael Colborne, he wants to replace him with someone even worse. The government in Kiev does not acknowledge him and his unit. Nevertheless, it is quite possible that the Ukrainian military leadership at least tolerates his activities because it harms Putin and his war of aggression.
Unlike the RDK, the “Freedom of Russia” legion is a unit of the Ukrainian armed forces. The Legion consists of defectors from the Russian armed forces, Russian volunteers and prisoners of war. The association is headed by Ilya Ponomaryov, a Russian opposition politician who has been living in Ukraine since 2016. Ponomaryov also appears to be behind the so-called Republican National Army, which claimed responsibility for the attacks on prominent Russian pro-war figures Daria Dugina, Vladlen Tatarsky and Zakhar Prilepin. Ponomarev confirmed the British LBC Radio the Legion’s participation in the action in the Belgorod region and also spoke about his goal: “This war will not end in Ukraine, this war can only end in Moscow, if Putin’s regime is replaced.”
How does the action benefit Ukraine?
Given the expected counter-offensive by Ukrainian forces, some observers suspected the attack on Russian territory could be a diversionary tactic by Ukraine to tie Russian troops in one place so they would be absent elsewhere. In fact, more than 4,200 soldiers and dozens of military vehicles are said to have been used to fight the partisans, the newspaper Novaya Gazeta Evropa reported, citing a source in the Russian armed forces. However, it is unclear whether it will benefit the Ukrainian army on the front lines in Ukraine.
According to the official Russian interpretation, the attack primarily serves to distract the Ukrainian and international public from the alleged defeat in Bakhmut. Russia claims to have conquered the city in the Donbass, but Kiev denies this. Military expert Colonel Markus Reisner believes the Russian interpretation is credible: “No one is talking about Bakhmut anymore. The goal has been achieved,” he told ntv.de, referring to the incidents in Belgorod.
How does the action benefit the Kremlin?
According to British intelligence, Russia will use the incidents in the Belgorod region to portray itself as a victim in this war. Russian propaganda and Kremlin boss Putin had previously claimed several times that the West was waging a war against Russia. “Russia will almost certainly use these incidents to bolster the official narrative that it is a victim of the war,” the UK MoD said in its daily situation report.
According to military expert Reisner, it is not to be expected that the attacks by Russian partisans on their own territory will lead directly to a further escalation of the war. “It can only escalate if Russia actually feels cornered – for example by massive attacks on its own territory,” said the Austrian army colonel ntv.de. “We’re a long way from that.”