Russian authorities were on Monday evacuating civilians from more areas along the Ukrainian border, a week into Kyiv’s surprise cross-border incursion into Russian territory.
Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of the Belgorod region in southern Russia, said people living in the Krasnoyaruzhsky district were being relocated to safer places. This comes after the evacuations over the weekend of thousands of people living in the neighboring Kursk region.
“We’re having a disturbing morning – enemy activities on the border of Krasnoyaruzhsky district. I am sure that our military will do everything to cope with this threat. But to protect the life and health of our people, we are beginning to relocate people who live in the Krasnoyaruzhsky district to safer places,” he said in a statement posted on his official Telegram channel.
The incursion, which is now affecting two Russian regions, is seen as something of a game-changer in the conflict. The Ukrainian military has in the past regularly attacked targets inside the Belgorod region with drones and missiles, but until last week Kyiv had not launched any official ground incursions across the border in the two and half years since the start of the full-scale war.
The extent of the operation remains unclear.
An influential Russian military blog Rybar said on Monday that “apparently the [Armed Forces of Ukraine] is not shying away from plans to stretch our defensive formations, create the maximum number of points of tension, and attempt to break through in the east to cut Belgorod off from the north.”
Several Russian military bloggers reported an attempt by Ukrainian armed forces to attack a border crossing in the Belgorod region Monday morning, in the district that Russian authorities say is being evacuated.
The operation, which started last Tuesday, has been shrouded in mystery. Ukrainian officials have for days remained silent, refusing to comment on reports of Ukrainian troops operating inside Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky finally confirmed Kyiv’s troops crossed into Russia on Saturday, saying in his nightly address to the nation that “Ukraine is proving that it really knows how to restore justice and guarantees exactly the kind of pressure that is needed – pressure on the aggressor.”
Diversionary tactic?
The reason for the attack is also unclear. Ukraine has been under increased pressure along the 600-mile frontline as Moscow continues its slow, grinding offensive, inching towards several strategically important towns and roads in eastern Ukraine.
The cross-border attack could be an attempt to divert Russian resources elsewhere. Given the spate of more negative developments from the frontline, the news of a successful incursion help Kyiv boost the morale of its troops and civilian population.
Moscow has been scrambling to contain the attack. Russian authorities imposed a sweeping counter-terror operation in the three border regions, but stopped short of declaring the incursion an act of war.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based conflict monitoring group, said this was likely an attempt by the Kremlin to deliberately downplay the assault to prevent domestic panic or backlash over the fact that Russia was unable to defend its own borders.
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has refrained from officially declaring a state of war, has repeatedly demonstrated his unwillingness to transfer Russian society fully to a war-time footing, and has forgone declaring general mobilization as part of wider efforts to prevent domestic discontent that could threaten the stability of (his) regime,” the ISW said in its update.
The counterterrorist regime officially gives Russian authorities wider powers, including the ability to monitor telephone conversations and restrict communications and limiting the movement of people.