War Enters New Phase as Ukraine Launches Offensive in Russian Territory

A Ukrainian ground assault on Russian regions across the border continued on Wednesday for their second day, forcing Russia to evacuate residents from the Kursk region, sparking a backlash against President Vladimir Putin for failing to thwart the attacks.

According to The Moscow TImes, this latest campaign by Ukraine is “larger in scale and more prepared than previous efforts”. The English-language daily cited local officials as reporting at least five people had been killed in the attack so far, and scores of others injured.

Some three Ukrainian troops, accompanied by 11 tanks and nearly two dozen armored vehicles launched the attack on Kursk, according to The Moscow Times.

On Tuesday, Ukrainian forces attacked the border town of Sudzha, in the Kursk region, some 300 miles southwest of Moscow, Reuters cited the Russian Defense Ministry as saying, with Putin calling the move a “major provocation” and accusing Ukraine of indiscriminately targeting civilians. 

On Telegram on Wednesday, Kursk Governor Alexei Smirnov confirmed that “over the past 24 hours, our region has been heroically resisting attacks by Ukrainian Nazis. All emergency services have been put on high alert”.

While attacking both Ukraine and Russia have in the past resorted to targeting each others’ energy infrastructure, the war is now entering a new phase and expanding to the African front, with Moscow’s Wagner mercenaries using the continent in a flanking maneuver and Kyiv following. Both Mali and Niger have severed diplomatic ties with Kyiv, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups in the countries as a counterbalance to Wagner forces.

Last week, Ukraine was under scrutiny for its alleged intelligence role in an attack conducted by Tuareg rebels in the north against Mali’s military government, during which dozens of Wagner mercenaries and Malian soldiers were reportedly killed. 

By Charles Kennedy

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