Joe McConnell
The Russian military said it was “continuing to repel” a Ukrainian cross-border incursion into the western Kursk region, a surprise attack now in its fourth day.
The Russian Defense Ministry said Ukraine had lost more than 280 servicemen over the past 24 hours, a claim that has not been independently verified.
Ukrainian troops are reportedly operating more than 10 kilometers (six miles) inside Russia, Kiev’s deepest cross-border advance since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine has not openly admitted the incursion, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday that Moscow must “feel” the consequences of its invasion.
Separately, the Ukrainian military said it struck a military airfield in the heart of Russia overnight, destroying guided bombs stored in warehouses.
In a statement, the Ukrainian military reported a large fire and multiple detonations at Lipetsk airport, more than 350 km (217 miles) from the border with Ukraine, after the overnight attack.
The statement said the airfield was known to host Russian Su-34, Su-35 and MiG-31 warplanes, but no further information about the attack was provided.
Lipetsk regional authorities said a state of emergency had been declared in the area, confirming the detonations at an “energy facility.” Residents of four nearby villages were evacuated.
In a statement released Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said its forces were repelling “an attempt by the Ukrainian Armed Forces to invade the territory of the Russian Federation.”
He said Russia was using aviation and artillery, managing to suppress “attempts of incursion by enemy units.”
A “federal state of emergency” was declared in the Kursk region on Tuesday morning, a decision that underscores the gravity of the current situation.
Russia said that about 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers, supported by tanks and armored vehicles, entered the Kursk region on Tuesday morning.
“Russia brought war to our territory and should prove what it did,” Zelensky said in a video message Thursday evening.
“Ukrainians know how to achieve their goals. And we did not choose to achieve our goals in war,” he added.
