Putin meets top military advisers as Ukrainian forces extend incursion into Kursk

Ukraine's surprise incursion into Russia's Kursk region continued into a second day yesterday, prompting Vladimir Putin to convene a meeting with his top defence and law enforcement officials.

- Dan Sabbagh

A report from one Russia military blogger suggested Ukrainian forces had advanced northwards, possibly as far as nine miles from the border, along a highway north of the border village of Sverdlikovo and near a major natural gas transmission hub, but this could not be verified.

Russian sources reported that a force of several hundred soldiers had crossed a lightly defended part of the border on Tuesday morning, in what appears to be one of the largest incursions into Russia since the war began in February 2022.

Russia's defence ministry had claimed to have repelled the raid on Tuesday, but acknowledged at lunchtime yesterday that fighting was ongoing. It said air and missile strikes and artillery fire had been used against the invaders, inflicting 260 casualties and knocking out 50 armoured vehicles.

In televised remarks at the start of a meeting with members of the Russian government, Putin described the raid as a major provocation. He later met Russia's top military figures.