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2023 Belgorod Oblast incursions

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2023 Belgorod Oblast attack
Part of the 2022–2023 Western Russia attacks in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
Date22 May 2023
Location
Grayvoronsky District, Belgorod Oblast, Russia
50°29′N 35°40′E / 50.483°N 35.667°E / 50.483; 35.667
Status Ongoing
Belligerents
Freedom of Russia Legion
Russian Volunteer Corps
 Ukraine (alleged by Russia, denied by Ukraine)		  Russia
Units involved

Freedom of Russia Legion

Russian Volunteer Corps

Russian Armed Forces

Federal Security Service

Police of Russia

National Guard
Strength
1+ tank(s)[1][2]
2+ armoured vehicles[3]		 Unknown
Casualties and losses
Per Russia:
1 unmanned aerial vehicle[4]		 Unknown
Per Russia:
8 civilians wounded[5][6]

On 22 May 2023, Russian authorities said that an armed Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group crossed the border into Belgorod region. Reportedly, two Russian opposition partisan groups loyal to the Irpin Declaration—the Freedom of Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps—attacked targets in Grayvoronsky District[7], with the goal to create a demilitarized zone in Belgorod to protect Ukraine from Russian assaults.[8] The Freedom of Russia Legion claimed the groups took control of several border towns in the district, with fighting ongoing.[9][10] In response, "counter-terrorism" restrictions have been imposed in the region by governor Gladkov, to combat the incursion and partisan activities.[11] If reports are true, it is the largest incursion of its kind since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[2]

Background

This paragraph is an excerpt from Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[edit]
There have been attacks in mainland Russia as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began on 24 February 2022. The main targets have been the military, the arms industry and the oil industry. Many of the attacks have been drone strikes, firebombing, and rail sabotage. The Ukrainian intelligence services have acknowledged carrying out some of these attacks. Others have been carried out by anti-war activists in Russia. There has also been cross-border shelling, missile strikes and ground raids from Ukraine, mainly in the Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk oblasts. Several times, Ukrainian-backed armed groups have launched incursions from Ukraine into Russia, captured border villages and battled the Russian military. While Ukraine has supported these ground incursions, it has denied direct involvement.

In early February 2023, Bryansk Oblast authorities claimed that they have been strengthening the border with Ukraine. The Governor of Bryansk Oblast Alexander Bogomaz posted photos from a meeting with "commanders of the group protecting the border" on his Telegram channel, and stated that "the work done on the construction of protective structures and strongpoints was highly appreciated by the command of the Russian Armed Forces."[12]

The Russian Volunteer Corps, a far-right Russian nationalist group fighting against the Russian government, previously claimed responsibility for a brief incursion into neighboring Bryansk Oblast in March 2023, two months earlier.[13]

Attack

On 22 May 2023, footage emerged on Russian Telegram channels showing an apparent military incursion into the border checkpoint in the Grayvoronsky District of Belgorod Oblast.[14] Later that day, Belgorod governor Vyacheslav Gladkov announced via Telegram that a "Ukrainian military sabotage and reconnaissance group" had entered the district, saying that Russian forces were "taking the necessary steps to eliminate the enemy".[14][2] As claimed by him, there are explosions and drone attacks on communities in the region.[7] Reportedly, the deputy head of Grayvoron's municipal administration and two emergency workers were wounded in the attack that damaged the town hall.[15]

The Freedom of Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps claimed responsibility for the incursion, announcing that the two organizations working together had "liberated" the villages of Kozinka,[14][9][10] Gora-Podol,[16] and Glotovo [ru][1] and that its forward units had reached the local district capital of Grayvoron.[14][10] Russian pro-war Telegram channels gave a different account, reporting that fighting was taking place in Kozinka, but that the village had not been captured.[14] Additionally, fighters of the Russian Volunteer Corps posted photos of their members in front of road signs for the settlements of Lyubimovka [ru] (Bryansk), Bezlyudovka (Belgorod), and Churovichi [ru; uk] (Bryansk).[16]

Ukrainian sources began circulating a photo showing three soldiers participating in the incursion proclaiming a so-called "Belgorod People's Republic" and holding a flag of the supposed republic.[1] Jokes about this supposed entity, a satire on the events in Donbas of 2014 that led to the proclamation by the pro-Russian Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics, circulated on Ukrainian social media.[17][18]

Belgorod government response

Later on 22 May, Gladkov announced that "counter-terrorism" restrictions were being introduced across Belgorod Oblast, under which citizens will need to provide documents confirming their identity, and industries that use hazardous materials will be suspended, among other restrictions.[11] He also said that the Belgorod government, with cooperation between local officials and the Ministry of Emergency Situations is going from house to house in border village to evacuate civilians, and that "most of the population" has been evacuated.[6]

According to Ukrainian official Andriy Yusov, Russian forces have begun the emergency evacuation of nuclear ammunition stockpiles from the Belgorod region.[19]

Reactions

Ukraine

According to the spokesman of the Ukraine's Military Intelligency Agency (HUR), Andriy Yusov, speaking on 22 May, the incursion was carried out by the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom of Russia Legion to "liberate territories" and create a security corridor to protect Ukrainian civilians. He stated that the striking force was solely composed of Russian citizens.[20][21] Senior aide to Ukrainian President, Mykhailo Podolyak, said that Ukraine was monitoring the situation with interest, but was not involved in the conflict. Podolyak stated that "tanks are sold at any Russian military store" and that the fighters are Russian citizens who are part of underground guerilla groups.[22] Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also said that the Ukrainian government had "nothing to do with" the incursion, blaming it on an organic Russian "violent resistance movement".[17]

Russia

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the attack an attempt by Ukraine "to divert attention from the Bakhmut direction and minimise the political effect of Bakhmut's loss for the Ukrainian side".[10] He said that Russian President Vladimir Putin was informed about the incident.[23]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Barnes, Joe; Vasilyeva, Nataliya (22 May 2023). "Pro-Ukrainian fighters launch cross-border tank raid to 'capture' Russian villages". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "'Sabotage' group crossed into Russia, Belgorod governor says". DW News. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  3. ^ Roth, Andrew (22 May 2023). "Anti-Putin militia claims to have overrun Russian border village". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  4. ^ Butenko, Victoria; Chernova, Anna (May 22, 2023). "Russia accuses Ukraine of mounting 'sabotage' attack across border". CNN. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  5. ^ "Russian Border Region Says Ukrainian 'Sabotage' Unit Carried Out Incursion". The Moscow Times. May 22, 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023.
  6. ^ a b "At least 8 people injured in attack on Russia's Belgorod region, governor says". CNN. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  7. ^ a b "Governor claims explosions in Russia's Belgorod Oblast". Kyiv Independent. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  8. ^ "Freedom of Russia Legion says they are creating a "demilitarised zone" in Russia". Ukrainska Pravda. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Russian Volunteer Corps and Freedom of Russia Legion report liberation of two settlements in Belgorod Oblast". Ukrainska Pravda. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  10. ^ a b c d "Russian regional governor says Ukrainian 'sabotage group' crossed border". Reuters. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  11. ^ a b "Russia's Belgorod region imposes counterterrorism restrictions in response to incursion by pro-Ukrainian groups". Meduza. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  12. ^ "Рейд "диверсантов" в Брянскую область. Кто и зачем его устроил и другие вопросы (на некоторые из которых пока нет ответов)" [The raid of "saboteurs" in the Bryansk region. Who arranged it and why, and other questions (some of which are still unanswered)]. BBC News Russian (in Russian). 2023-03-03. Archived from the original on 2023-03-06. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
  13. ^ Dixon, Robyn; Ebel, Francesca; Ilyushina, Mary (2023-03-02). "Kremlin accuses Ukraine of violent attack in western Russia". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 2023-03-02. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
  14. ^ a b c d e "Belgorod governor reports incursion into region by 'Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group'". Meduza. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  15. ^ "Casualty count rises in Grayvoron district near Ukrainian border. Six civilians injured by shelling, Belgorod governor reports". Meduza. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  16. ^ a b "Explosions in Belgorod Oblast: Russian Volunteer Corps and Freedom of Russia Legion urge not to resist". Ukrainska Pravda. Yahoo! News. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  17. ^ a b Polityuk, Pavel (22 May 2023). "Russia says it's battling cross-border raids; nothing to do with us, says Ukraine". Reuters. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023.
  18. ^ ""Боже, бомбі Бєлгород": мережа вибухнула мемами через події в "БНР"" ["Oh my god, bomb Belgorod": Internet blows up with "BNR" memes]. Ukrainian Independent Information Agency (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  19. ^ "Russians urgently evacuating nuclear stocks from Belgorod region - intel". Ukrinform. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  20. ^ "Ukrainian military intelligence: Russian groups behind incursion". Reuters. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  21. ^ "Операція зі створення "смуги безпеки" на кордоні з РФ: що відомо про події у Бєлгородській області". Suspilne. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  22. ^ "Zelenskyy's senior aide says Ukraine has nothing to do with Belgorod operation". Al Jazeera English. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  23. ^ "Kremlin says Putin has been informed of incursion into Belgorod Oblast". Ukrainska Pravda. 22 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
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