(ANSA-AFP) - MOSCOW/KYIV, MAR 12 - Moscow on Tuesday said its
army had beaten back Ukrainian forces trying to claim territory
in two Russian border regions, deploying warplanes, missiles and
artillery to fend off the assaults. The defence ministry said in
a statement that Russian forces "thwarted an attempt by the Kyiv
regime to make a breakthrough into the border territory of the
Russian Federation in the Belgorod and Kursk regions".
Russian volunteers fighting for Ukraine said Tuesday they had
launched a cross-border attack on Russian territory and were
assaulting a village on the border between the warring
countries. Kyiv and Moscow routinely attack each other's border
regions with attack drones, but Ukrainian incursions led by
Russian citizens are rare. The Freedom of Russia Legion said on
social media its forces had "destroyed" a Russian armoured
military vehicle in the village of Tyotkino in the Kursk region.
Another group called the Sibir Battalion said on social media
that "As promised, we are bringing freedom and justice to our
Russian land." The governor of the Kursk region Roman Starovoyt
confirmed that the volunteer forces had entered into Russian
territory and that there had been fighting within Tyotkino.
"There was a gun battle, but no breakthrough," Starovoyt wrote
on his Telegram channel. (ANSA-AFP).
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