Sun 04 June 2023:
Fighting has erupted in southern Russia as armed groups launched new cross-border attacks from Ukraine, with Moscow claiming that it had targeted the “terrorists” with artillery fire.
Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the besieged Belgorod region, stated on Sunday that clashes had erupted on his side of the border, and he admitted for the first time that pro-Ukrainian forces had taken Russian prisoners of war during incursions.
He said he was ready for talks to retrieve “our guys” and told the armed groups he would meet them for the exchange.
“A sabotage group came in. There is combat in [the] Novaya Tavolzhanka [border village],” Gladkov said. “I hope they will all be destroyed.”
The pro-Kyiv Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom of Russia Legion called on the Belgorod governor to meet and retrieve captive soldiers.
“The only thing stopping me from negotiating with them is our guys that are in their hands, maybe they are already dead,” said Gladkov.
Numerous Russian border towns have recently been heavily attacked by Ukraine, prompting thousands of people to escape to the regional capital of Belgorod.
Later, the Russian military caimed it repelled a “sabotage group of Ukrainian terrorists” seeking to cross the frontier near the settlement.
“The enemy was hit by artillery. The enemy scattered and retreated,” it said in a statement.
Gladkov had earlier requested that residents of the border district of Shebekino vacate their houses due to the shelling.
Earlier, the armed groups published a video addressing the governor. It claimed to show “prisoners” their captors called “simple soldiers sent by your leadership to this war”.
The one minute and 26 second clip showed what appeared to be about a dozen Russian soldiers being held captive, with two lying on hospital beds. A man identifying himself as the commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps said he would hand over the soldiers in exchange for a meeting with Governor Gladkov.
He described the captives as “ordinary soldiers whom you and your political leadership sent to the slaughter”, said a statement posted with the video.
Hours later, Gladkov appeared in a video message in which he agreed to meet the group if the soldiers were still alive.
“Most likely they killed them, as hard as it is for me to say. But if they are alive, from 5-6pm – Shebekino checkpoint. I guarantee safety,” Gladkov said.
The fighter in the video said Gladkov did not turn up at the designated meeting place. “We have already decided the fate of these guys. They will be transferred to the Ukrainian side for the exchange procedure,” he said.
Ukraine officials have predicted the rise of what they call forces opposed to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Ukraine has consistently denied responsibility for attacks on Russian soil, but presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said on Sunday the situation in the border areas “should be viewed as the future of Russia”.
Gladkov said on Sunday that Ukrainian forces continued to shell his region overnight after two people were killed the previous evening and hundreds of children were evacuated away from the border.
The attacks on the Belgorod region come as Kyiv says it is preparing a major counteroffensive against Russian forces.
Ukrainian army appeared to call on soldiers to stay silent about the plans and said there will be no announcement on the start of the long-awaited counterattack. pic.twitter.com/KGuFbDWjUp
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) June 4, 2023
In a video published on Sunday, the Ukrainian army appeared to call on soldiers to stay silent about the plans and said there will be no announcement on the start of the long-awaited counterattack.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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