Kyiv denies claim it shot at civilians in border raid
Russian officials accused Ukrainian saboteurs of crossing into western Russia and firing on civilians in local villages Thursday. Ukraine denied the claim and warned that Moscow could use it to justify stepping up its own attacks in the ongoing war.
The exact circumstances of the incident reported in the Bryansk region were unclear, including what the strategic purpose of such an attack might be.
If confirmed, it would be another indication following drone attacks earlier this week that Kyiv could be stepping up pressure against Moscow by exposing Russian defensive weaknesses, embarrassing the Kremlin and sowing unease among Russian civilians.
Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed Ukrainian “terrorists” for an incursion, alleging they deliberately targeted civilians, including children in “yet another terror attack, another crime.”
“They infiltrated the area near the border and opened fire on civilians,” Putin said during a video call..
The alleged incusion came just days after Putin ordered the Federal Security Service, the main KGB successor agency, to tighten controls on Russia's border with Ukraine.
While Russian war hawks have expressed dismay about what they have seen as Putin's reluctance to declare martial law and a sweeping mobilization of soldiers, the Russian leader's comments Thursday didn't appear to signal any such moves.
Putin blamed the attack on “neo-Nazis” and said it confirmed that Russia did the right thing by launching its “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Kyiv and its Western allies dismissed his assertion as a bogus cover for an unprovoked act of aggression.
Ukraine's military intelligence representative, Andrii Cherniak, saw the Russian claims as evidence that Moscow is facing what Kyiv alleges is an uprising among its own disgruntled people.
“This was done by the Russians; Ukraine has nothing to do with it,” he said.
Cherniak noted that a group calling itself the Russian Volunteer Corps had claimed responsibility for the attack in a video urging Russians to rebel. In other developments:
• The U.S. is expected to announce a new package of military aid for Ukraine on Friday, including —for the first time — eight armored vehicles that can launch bridges and allow troops to cross rivers or other gaps, U.S. officials said Thursday.
The officials said the total cost of the package will be about $400 million and will also include large amounts of ammunition, such as rockets.
• Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov talked briefly Thursday at a meeting of top diplomats from the Group of 20 nations. It was the first high-level meeting in months between Russia and the U.S.
A senior U.S. official, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity, said Blinken had “disabused” Lavrov of any idea the Kremlin might have that U.S. support for Ukraine is wavering.