Russia Crushes Cross-Border Incursion From Ukraine

Russia said on Tuesday it had routed fighters who crossed the border from Ukraine after two days of combat, in what appeared to be one of the biggest incursions of its kind of the 15-month-old war.

There was no immediate independent confirmation that the fighting had ended, although one of two groups claiming to be behind the raid said in a post on social media: “One day we will return to stay.”

The two days of fighting had forced Russia to evacuate towns along the Ukrainian border. Russia has blamed Ukraine for the attack, which Kyiv denied. The two groups that claimed responsibility describe themselves as Russian armed dissidents.

The Russian military said it had killed more than 70 “Ukrainian nationalists” and destroyed four armoured vehicles. There was no independent confirmation of those losses.

Russian forces had surrounded the enemy fighters and defeated them with “air strikes, artillery fire and active action by border units,” the defence ministry said.

“The remnants of the nationalists were pushed back to Ukrainian territory, where they continued to be hit by gunfire until they were completely eliminated,” it added.

Earlier on Tuesday, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov had told residents who fled the fighting the previous day that it was not yet safe to return.

Reuters/Shakirat Sadiq