Russia implements 'counter-terrorism operation' in bordering Kursk, Bryansk, Belgorod oblasts amid ongoing fighting

Editor's note: The latest articles on Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast can be found here.

Russian authorities have introduced a so-called "counter-terrorism operation" in bordering Kursk, Bryansk, and Belgorod oblasts in response to Ukraine's incursion into the Kursk region, Russian state-media outlet RIA Novosti reported on Aug. 10.

Following a surprise incursion by Ukrainian forces across the border days earlier, fighting has continued in the oblast, with Ukraine reportedly making gains deeper into Russian territory.

Russia's Defense Ministry acknowledged on Aug. 9 that its forces were fighting the Ukrainian army on the outskirts of the town of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast.

Russia's National Anti-Terrorism Committee introduced new restrictive measures in the three oblasts including monitoring residents' phone conversations and restricting the movement of vehicles and pedestrians, New Voice reported.

Other measures include the temporary relocation of residents as well as loosely defined "public order protection."

Earlier in the day, Russia's Defense Ministry said it was sending additional military equipment to Kursk Oblast's Sudzha district - a town located 10 kilometers (6 miles) east of the border with Ukraine.

Battles are also ongoing "a few dozen kilometers" from Kurchatov in Kursk Oblast, the town's mayor, Igor Korpunkov, claimed. The town is located some 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Ukraine's Sumy Oblast and hosts the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant.

Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry also said on Aug. 9 that the situation in Kursk Oblast had been declared a "federal emergency."

Kyiv has so far maintained a policy of silence on the incursion, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Aug. 8 that "Russia brought war to our land, and it should feel what it has done." He did not directly mention the incursion into Kursk Oblast.

Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russian officials have regularly referred to Kyiv's democratically-elected government as a "terrorist regime" in an effort to justify its invasion.

In the last known instance, Russia instituted a counterterrorism operation on June 23 after militants allegedly fired on a synagogue, two churches, and a police post in Russia's Dagestan Republic.

Ukrainian troops publish video from Sudzha’s outskirts in Kursk Oblast, media say

The video was allegedly filmed in an alley in the Zaoleshenka settlement on the western outskirts of Sudzha, where the Gazprom facility is located, two kilometers (1.4 miles) from the town’s center, according to the independent Russian media outlet Meduza.

The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Hodunova