Second Russian Region Declares Emergency After Ukraine Attack

Photo : AFP

A state of emergency has been declared in the Russian border region of Belgorod following a series of attacks by Ukrainian forces. Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported that the situation in the region is "extremely difficult," citing daily shelling and damage to civilian infrastructure. "Houses are destroyed, civilians have died, and many have been injured," Gladkov stated.

The declaration in Belgorod comes after Ukraine's surprise cross-border attack last week in Russia's Kursk region. This attack prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin to declare a state of emergency in Kursk, leading to large-scale evacuations. In response to the ongoing attacks, Gladkov announced plans to appeal to the federal government to elevate the emergency status to a federal level.

According to Gladkov, Ukrainian drones targeted the city of Shebekino and the village of Ustinka, though no casualties have been reported from these specific attacks. In a broader defense effort, Russia claimed to have shot down 117 drones overnight, which targeted four regions: Kursk, Voronezh, Belgorod, and Nizhny Novgorod.

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Belgorod, situated just south of Kursk, has been affected by Ukraine's deepest incursion into Russian territory since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian troops had advanced further into Russian territory. Army Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported that Kyiv had gained control over 40 square kilometers and 74 settlements, though the exact extent of the Ukrainian advance remains uncertain. There is skepticism about Syrskyi's previous claim that Ukrainian forces controlled a total of 1,000 square kilometers.

Ukraine has stated that it does not intend to retain any captured Russian territory and would cease raids if Russia agreed to a "just peace." Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhiy Tykhy emphasized that Ukraine's goal is not territorial conquest but to restore peace. "The sooner Russia agrees to restore a just peace, the sooner the raids by the Ukrainian defense forces into Russia will stop," Tykhy told reporters.

In response, President Putin accused Ukraine of rejecting Russian proposals for peace and claimed that Ukraine, with Western support, is acting on behalf of its Western backers. "It appears that the enemy, with the help of his Western masters, is fulfilling their will, and the West is fighting us through the hands of the Ukrainians," Putin said.

President Zelensky has reiterated that Ukraine will not negotiate with Moscow until all Ukrainian territory, including Crimea annexed in 2014, is returned. Russia has struggled to counter the Ukrainian advance, with nearly 200,000 Russians displaced from parts of the Kursk region. Despite Moscow's claims of thwarting Ukrainian advances, there is ongoing skepticism about the effectiveness of these defenses.

US President Joe Biden commented that the Ukrainian offensive is creating a "real dilemma" for Putin, reflecting the broader impact of the conflict on the geopolitical landscape.

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