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Ukraine surprised the world last week with a shocking invasion of Russia’s Kursk region.
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A new video released by Ukrainian paratroopers appears to capture the first hours of the invasion.
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The video shows Ukrainian troops crossing the border and engaging in combat.
Ukrainian paratroopers have released a new video they say captures the first hours of Russia’s shocking invasion of Kiev last week.
The video, released Friday by the command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, reportedly shows troops fighting in Russia’s western Kursk region on August 6.
According to the Ukrainian paratroopers’ report, the footage shows Ukrainian troops crossing the Russian border, destroying defense lines, clearing mines, conducting artillery fire and taking prisoners.
“The first hours of the offensive of the Armed Forces in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation on August 6, 2024. A day that will go down in the history of the Russian-Ukrainian war,” the Ukrainian paratroopers wrote on Facebook, according to a translation by the Ukrainian government media Ukrinform.
“Careful preparation, planning, surprise, morale and secrecy were crucial in the initial phase of the operation,” the paratroopers said, adding that the attack now relies on multiple branches of the armed forces.
Business Insider was unable to independently verify the content and details of the video.
Ukraine surprise military invasion in the Kursk region stunned Russia and Kiev’s international partners, including the US, which had not been warned about the operation in advance. Moscow has rushed to respond to the raid, which is now in its 11th day and marks the largest foreign enemy attack on Russian soil since World War II.
Ukraine’s military leadership said earlier this week that its troops already conquered about 1,000 square kilometers (about 386 square miles) of Russian territory — nearly as much as Moscow has captured in Ukraine this year — and more than 80 settlements. More than 130,000 civilians have fled the area. Ukraine plans to set up humanitarian aid and evacuation corridors.
The British Ministry of Defence said in a Friday intelligence update on the situation that Ukrainian forces have managed to penetrate 10-25 kilometers (6-16 miles) deep into the Kursk region.
The ministry said that “while Russia had set up defense lines and had border troops in the area, they were not prepared to respond to a multi-battalion attack force.” Ukraine’s attack was a large-scale combined arms operation.
But “after the initial disorder and disorganization, Russian forces have been deployed to the region in greater numbers, probably from elsewhere along the line of contact,” the Defense Ministry added. “They have also begun building additional defensive positions in an attempt to prevent Ukrainian advances.”
The British assessment of the changes in Russian troop levels echoes similar observations made by the US on Thursday.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the U.S. has seen some Russian forces diverted from operations in and around Ukraine to the Kursk region.
“I cannot say for sure how many units will leave or what their intentions are, but we do see Russian units being redeployed to the Kursk area,” he told reporters.
It remains to be seen whether these steps will ease the pressure on Ukraine in other parts of the frontline, especially since the Ukrainians have also withdrawn some troops from the frontline ahead of the Kursk offensive.
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