Days ahead of next weekend’s Russian presidential election, Ukrainian forces appear to have decided to play their own role, forcing the Russian military to fight on the very territory of the Russian Federation. Today, Russian fighters with Ukraine called on the population to leave the cities of Kursk and Belgorod, to avoid civilian casualties.
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With our correspondent in Kiev, Stephen Siohane
Since Tuesday, March 12, three groups of Russian volunteers, the Russian Freedom Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Siberian Battalion, appear to have been engaged in fighting with Russian police forces and soldiers in the Kursk region, where Russian opposition volunteers say they have taken control of the small border town of Tyotkino. is
The extent of these battles is difficult to independently verify, but several videos document the passage of armed groups and armored vehicles into Russia, while on Tuesday, a Ukrainian drone fell on the town hall of Belgorod, the capital of another Russian regional border. In the spring of 2023, these Russian groups, notoriously coordinated by Ukrainian military intelligence, had already attempted to infiltrate Russia.
This Wednesday morning, one of the commanders of the nationalist formation, the Russian Volunteer Corps, Denis Nikitin, declared in an interview that the current operation aims to stop the Russian presidential election in the border areas with Ukraine, to discredit this election with the aim of re-legitimizing Vladimir Putin.
For the second night in a row, Ukraine also carried out a massive wave of drone bombings on Russian refineries. The attacks took place in five Russian regions between Tuesday and Wednesday night, partially halting production at some refineries. Another way to put pressure on the Kremlin first Poll this weekend.
Also readSome Russian territories have been targeted by Ukrainian drone strikes
