Editor's note: The story was updated with comments from Ukraine's military intelligence agency. Following over a week of cross-border raids, the Ukrainian-equipped anti-Kremlin militias held a joint press conference in downtown Kyiv to have their voices heard. With the recent incursions, the Ukraine-led militants say their goal was to "open
In the early hours of March 12, three anti-Kremlin Russian armed groups announced they had crossed the border into Russia's Belgorod and Kursk oblasts, promising "to fight the criminal Russian regime" with "weapons in hand." The footage capturing the crossing revealed that the fighters were well-armed, including with armored vehicles
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that all Russians who fight for Ukraine must be tracked down and "punished...without any statute of limitations, wherever they may be located."
Russian volunteer fighters from the Siberian Battalion claimed to have entered the Gorkovsky settlement in Russia's Belgorod Oblast and taken control of the local administration building, the militia said on March 17.
The governor of Russia’s Belgorod Oblast, Vyacheslav Gladkov, has said there are no hostilities on the territory of the region just hours after Ukrainian military intelligence said it was “now an area of active combat actions.”
The Kremlin may either allocate extra barricades and border security forces to deflect criticism, or choose to keep the majority of military equipment and personnel in Ukraine to conserve resources.
Key developments on March 13: * EU ambassadors approve $5.5 billion for defense fund for Ukraine in 2024 * Russian anti-Kremlin militias tell Russian citizens near Ukrainian border to evacuate * Russian oil refinery partially shuts down after drone attack * Media: Ukrainian drones attack 3 oil refineries in Russia, airfield in Voronezh
"The shelling of Ukraine from the territory of Belgorod must stop!" the joint statement said. The militias said they have been "forced" to fire upon Russian military positions in the area.
Editor's Note: The Kyiv Independent doesn't provide the full names of soldiers mentioned in the story to protect them and their families from persecution in Russia. They are identified by callsigns. KYIV OBLAST – In the early hours of March 12, Russian state media sounded the alarm. A number of Ukrainian
