Russia, Kursk Oblast. Moscow sends tanks and evacuates border areas

In the Kursk region to the west Russia Fighting continues after Ukrainian forces advanced several dozen kilometres into the region on Tuesday.

On Saturday, Russia's Defense Ministry said it had sent tanks to the region. It also said a Ukrainian armored vehicle had been destroyed.

Meanwhile, the local department of the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry reported that from the regions bordering Ukraine and located in the Kursk Oblast, over 76,000 people have been evacuated so far.

The government also announced that local government officials in border regions would be provided with satellite phones due to network disruptions, the Russian news agency TASS reported.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Kursk, Igor Kucak, said on Saturday that 16,000 residents of the region's border territories have already arrived in the city.

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On Friday a federal state of emergency was introduced in the Kursk region. The reason is the ongoing offensive of Ukrainian forces there since Tuesday. This is the first incursion of foreign troops into Russian territory since 1941. According to Russian sources, about 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers have penetrated there, supported by tanks, armored vehicles, drones and artillery. According to the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), in some places Ukrainian forces have already penetrated 35 km into the region.

On Friday, Ukrainian military officials released a recording in which they reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces they control the town of Sudja in the region and the local “strategic Gazprom facility.” The Ukrainian General Staff, however, has not commented on the matter, and Reuters – which reported the publication – was unable to verify the recording.