ALBAWABA - A state of emergency has been declared in Kursk after Russian authorities said Ukraine launched a rare incursion into the Russian border region.
Acting regional Governor Alexey Smirnov said the "operational situation" in the border area of Kursk remained "complicated" on Wednesday, a day after Russia said Ukrainian units launched an incursion into the region.
According to the Russian defense ministry, on Tuesday, 300 Ukrainian soldiers crossed the border into Russia in the town of Sudzha, which is about 400 miles southwest of Moscow, using tanks and armored vehicles. Across the border from the northern Sumy area of Ukraine is Kursk.
Amid continuing conflict between Ukrainian soldiers and Russian forces stationed to protect the area, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine on Wednesday of committing "yet another large-scale provocation" near the border.
Valery Gerasimov, Russia's general staff chief, later informed Putin that Russian forces had blocked an operation involving 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers - a considerably greater troop estimate than the original amount provided by the country's defense ministry.
