Russian officials claim Ukraine launching cross-border raid

Ukrainian forces have launched a major incursion into Russia’s Kursk region, according to Russian officials, in what could be a major escalation in the war.

Kursk, which lies just beyond Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region, has been under direct attack from Ukrainian troops since Tuesday night, Russia’s Ministry of Defense said in a post on Telegram.

Russian forces have mostly beaten back the advance of the Ukrainian force, which included 260 militants and 50 units of armored vehicles, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed.

Russian military blogger Rybar said on Telegram that Ukrainian forces have occupied several settlements in Kursk and are advancing toward the town of Sudzha. Ukrainian troops are also advancing toward the settlements of Nikolaevo-Darino just east of Sudzha.

At least 28 people have died in the attacks on the region, which is in a state of emergency, Russian state-run media reported.

Alexei Smirnov, the acting governor of the Kursk region, said the situation “remains tense” in a post on Telegram.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is holding an emergency meeting on the Kursk attacks, according to Smirnov.

Ukrainian officials have not publicly commented on the news. At the urging of the U.S., Kyiv has not directly sent troops into Russia and does not strike Russian territory with American or allied weapons unless it involves a cross-border attack.

A direct Ukrainian attack would frustrate Washington, which has tried to keep the war from escalating. Putin is likely to respond with aggression if Ukrainian forces mounted a direct assault on a Russian region.

Anti-Kremlin Russian groups have previously crossed into Russia’s border regions to mount attacks, but Russian military blogger Alexander Kots wrote “very specific brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces” entered Russia, calling it a full-blown military operation.

“Not a sabotage and reconnaissance group, not a terrorist squad, but regular troops of a neighboring state. And they do not hide this,” he wrote on Telegram.

The Kursk attacks may have been aimed at preventing Russian forces from mounting an offensive into the Sumy region, where reports indicated Moscow may launch another attack.

Ukraine is already defending its territory across the 600-mile front from Russian forces, including a May offensive that began in the northeastern Kharkiv region neighboring Sumy.