Ukraine invaded Russia this week – an attack that was shocking in scope and execution. Ukraine’s cross-border incursion into western Russia is now in its fifth day.
The specifics from both Ukraine and Russia are unclear. As of this week, NPR reports Ukraine’s military has sent a large ground force across Russia’s border and into Western Russia.
The Ukrainian soldiers crossed the country’s northeastern border Tuesday and now appear to be several miles inside Russia’s Kursk region, where they are operating in several villages
Per NPR: “The Ukrainians are operating in or have taken control of numerous villages and at least one town. Videos on social media show a burned-out column of Russian military vehicles, dozens of Russian soldiers surrendering, large numbers of Russian civilians fleeing by car. Now, neither Russia nor Ukraine is saying much. So we’re trying to put this together like a jigsaw puzzle, where we only have a small number of the pieces”
The Daily Beast states: “The mayor of Kurchatov, a Russian town near the border with Ukraine, said that Ukrainian forces had launched a stunning incursion into the country and were advancing toward a nuclear power plant Friday, according to the Washington Post. ,
The Institute for the Study of War reported Thursday that Ukrainian forces had penetrated as deep as 35 kilometers (22 miles) into Russian territory. Russian authorities declared a federal emergency in Kursk on Friday night as Ukrainian forces continued to advance, knocking out an entire Russian reinforcement convoy on the E38 highway, according to the Guardian.
Unconfirmed reports from later in the day, Friday, from the Ukrainian outlet OBOZ.UA claim that a Ukrainian drone hit the substation of the plant, knocking out power in Kurchatov.
The news comes as civilians continue to evacuate the border province of Kursk amid fears that the conflict will continue to creep onto Russian soil. Military commanders have also scrambled to send reinforcements from across the country to the region, where the fighting has been concentrated.
“IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi reiterates that all nuclear power plants, regardless of where they are situated, should never be a target of an armed attack,” the agency added.
