Russia declared a state of emergency in a western region as Ukraine’s military launched what appeared to be its biggest incursion into Russian territory since the Kremlin’s war began more than two years ago.
The declaration in the Kursk region, which borders Ukraine to the northeast, is required to “eliminate the consequences” of the assault by Kyiv’s forces, Alexey Smirnov, the region’s acting local governor, said on Telegram late Wednesday. Authorities have increased power to limit movement, suspend work and impose safety measures under the order.
Russian President Vladimir Putin summoned his top security and defense advisers to brief him on the effort to repel the incursion. Officials in Kyiv have declined to confirm or comment on the operation, though a senior aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signaled that Moscow was to blame for the fighting spilling over the border onto Russian soil.
“Russia has consistently believed that restrictive legal norms do not apply to it,” presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said in a statement posted on X. “War is war, with its own rules, where the aggressor inevitably reaps corresponding outcomes.”
Ukraine has targeted positions and energy assets well within Russian territory — and has staged incursions involving anti-Kremlin volunteers into the neighboring Belgorod region. But this week’s operation would be the first of its scale to involve Ukrainian military units.
