Raid on Belgorod Oblast: Russian military boasted of victory, Freedom of Russia Legion's statement contradicts this
The Ministry of Defence of Russia reported on the defeat of the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom of Russia Legion in Belgorod Oblast, but the groups denied it.
Source: the press service of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, the Freedom of Russia Legion (FRL), Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC) on Telegram
Quote: "During the counter-terrorist operation, the nationalist formations were blocked and defeated by air strikes, artillery fire and active actions of the State Border Guard units of the Western Military District."
Details: The official representative of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, Ihor Konashenkov, said that the raid on the territory of Belgorod Oblast was preceded by intense shelling of the Kozynka international checkpoint, as well as a number of other civilian objects in the Grayvoron district.
The Russian military claim that those they did not defeat on the territory of Russia were sent to Ukraine, "where they continued to be hit by fire until they were eliminated".
The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation boasts that they killed more than 70 people, destroyed 4 armoured combat vehicles and 5 pickup trucks.
In turn, the Freedom of Russia Legion (FRL) declared that they would continue liberating Belgorod Oblast together with the Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC). They emphasise that the Russian army was unable to oppose the "patriot volunteers".
FRL drew attention to the fact that there are no reserves in the Russian Federation for responding to military crises because all servicemen are dead, wounded or in Ukraine.
"The Russian Federation is not protected. There is panic in Belgorod Oblast, an organised evacuation in part, but mostly a spontaneous escape," FRL writes.
RVC stressed that for Russia to end the war with Ukraine, it is necessary to beat the enemy on the territory occupied by it. "The war will continue until the hanged body of Putin adorns the walls of the Kremlin, and the just court of Russian anger condemns his gang," Russian volunteers believe.
Background:
- On 22 May, the Russian Volunteer Corps and Freedom of Russia Legion announced that they had crossed the border and were "liberating" the settlements of
- Belgorod Oblast from the current Russian authorities: they started with the
- villages of Kozinka and Gora-Podol. These military formations also stated they
- were seeking the "liberation" of all of Russia.
- Andrii Yusov, spokesman for Ukraine's Defence Intelligence, has described the events taking place in Russia's Belgorod Oblast on 22 May as the creation of a "security zone" to
- protect Ukrainian citizens. Yusov stressed that the operation was conducted
- exclusively by Russian citizens.
- The Russian president's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, stated that the penetration of an alleged Ukrainian subversive intelligence group into the territory of Belgorod Oblast of the Russian Federation causes deep concern.
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