Kremlin claims their forces killed 70 ‘Ukrainian nationalists’ after two-day incursion inside Russian territory – despite the partisan force posting a video of themselves moving unopposed through the countryside

The Russian military said on Tuesday it had routed militants – who attacked a Russian border region with armoured vehicles the previous day – and killed more than 70 of them (picture shared by Russian state media of the fighters who entered Belgorod region)

Russia said those who attacked border region killed or pushed back into Ukraine
There was no independent confirmation of deaths nor the fighting having ended

The Kremlin has claimed that Russia had routed and killed ‘Ukrainian nationalists’ after two days of combat – despite the partisan force posting a video of themselves moving unopposed through the countryside.

The Russian military said on Tuesday it had routed militants – who attacked a Russian border region with armoured vehicles the previous day – and killed 70 of them, with the rest pushed back into Ukraine. There was no independent confirmation of the deaths.

In what appeared to be one of the biggest incursions from Ukraine since the war began 15 months ago, two purported anti-Kremlin armed groups employing Russians based abroad said they were responsible for the attack in Russia‘s Belgorod region.

The Russian defence ministry, which blamed the Ukrainian authorities, said its forces had surrounded the enemy fighters and defeated them with ‘air strikes, artillery fire and active action by border units’.

A ministry statement said more than 70 ‘Ukrainian nationalists’ had been killed and four armoured vehicles and five pick-up trucks destroyed.

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

The Belgorod regional governor said one civilian had been killed ‘at the hands of the Ukrainian armed forces’.

There was no immediate independent confirmation that the fighting had ended, but the governor of Russia’s Belgorod region said the anti-terrorism measures he introduced after Monday’s attack had been lifted.

One of the two fighting groups – the Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC) – said on social media: ‘One day we’ll come to stay.’

In a later statement, the group denied its forces had been routed. ‘The Russian Volunteer Corps has incurred no losses,’ it said.

In a statement on Telegram, Governor Gladkov (pictured) said the Russian army and security forces were taking measures to repel the incursion as he started a ‘counter terrorism operation’

A second group, the Freedom of Russia Legion, said it had ‘demilitarised’ a Russian motorised rifle company and destroyed armoured vehicles. It said Russian statements about thwarting the incursion described ‘imaginary losses’.

‘…Putin’s forces have not distinguished themselves with any successes in the past day,’ it said in a social media post.