Ukrainian President Voldymir Zelensky has been the first to publicly acknowledge that his army is operating in the Belgorod region of Russia.
“We will continue to carry out aggressive operations in the border areas of enemy territory. It is absolutely – war has to return to where it comes from,” he said Monday.
His comments also mention the Kursk region of Russia, where Ukraine still holds a small region after last year’s massive attacks. Moscow then recaptured most of its territory.
Zelensky said the “main purpose” was to protect the border areas of Ukraine between Smie and Khalkiv, and “relieve pressure” in other parts of the vast frontiers of the eastern Donetsk region.
Russian troops last month reported an attempt by Ukrainians to cross into the Belgorod region, but said such attacks were rejected.
Russian President Vladimir Putin began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and Moscow currently controls about 20% of Ukraine’s territory.
In a video speech late Monday, Zelensky said his top commander, General Oleksandr Silsky, had explained the situation “including our presence in Kursk and the Belgorod region.”
Zelensky thanked several Army units defending Ukraine, including the 225th Assault Regiment deployed in the Belgorod region.
“Well done, guys! I’m proud of each and every one fighting for Ukraine!” the president said.
He did not provide any further details. It is his first explicit approval of the Ukrainian army in Belgorod.
On March 18th, Zelensky indirectly confirmed that the Ukrainian troops were there.
“There’s an operation there,” he said when a reporter asked him to comment on the Russian Ministry of Defense statement, the Ukrainian forces said they were trying to enter the west of the Belgorod region.
Russia said attempts by all Ukrainians to advance towards the villages of Demidovka and Plilesi were rejected, preventing cross-border raids.
However, some of the Russian military bloggers of the time reported the battle at Demidovka itself, about two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
The US-based War Research Institute (ISW) said in an update on March 21 that “Ukrainian forces have recently advanced in Belgorod.”
“The Russian mirbloggers have argued that Ukrainian forces are moving forward and consolidating the outskirts of Demidovka and Prilesi,” ISW said, adding that such claims are unconfirmed.
For the past two days, Russian military bloggers have reported that Ukrainian troops have withdrawn from the Demidovka region.
The operation in Belgorod, Ukraine is considered to be much smaller compared to the actions in Kursk, where Kyiv seized many villages, including the local towns of Sudzha at one point.
Zelensky and his commander-in-chief have repeatedly stated that such an invasion forced Moscow to redeploy its troops from the Donetsk region.
Ukraine may also wish to exchange parts of the Ukrainian region occupied by Moscow in future peace negotiations promoted by the United States with the Russian region it holds.
Many war analysts – both in Ukraine and the West – have questioned the military obstacles of Kiev’s operations in Russian soils, reporting reported casualties and difficulties in supplying weapons.
