Europe | Raid on Belgorod

Who are the militias raiding Russia’s Belgorod region?

They have links to Ukrainian military intelligence and, in some cases, to the far right

Mandatory Credit: Photo by SERGEY KOZLOV/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (13931169l)Members of the 'Russian Volunteer Corps' and 'Freedom of Russia Legion' hold a meeting with the media not far from the Ukraine-Russia border in Kharkiv's area, northeastern Ukraine, 24 May 2023, amid the Russian invasion. According to the group of Russian fighters, who are aligned with Ukraine, during a meeting with the press on 24 May, they engaged in cross-border raids on the territory of the Belgorod region of Russia starting on 22 May 2023. Ukraine has denied Russia's allegation that it was behind the attacks on the Belgorod region and portrayed the incursions by the Russian volunteers as an uprising against the Kremlin and Putin's regime. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February 2022 starting a conflict that has provoked destruction and a humanitarian crisis.Russian fighters aligned with Ukraine claim responsibility for cross-border attack in Russia's Belgorod region, Kharkiv - 24 May 2023
Image: EPA
|KYIV

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Raid on Belgorod”

Europe May 27th 2023

From the May 27th 2023 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition
Reuse this content

More from Europe

Illustrtion of soldiers looking silly.

Meet Europe’s Gaullists, Atlanticists, denialists and Putinists

As Donald Trump returns, so do Europe’s old schisms over how to defend itself

A border officer sleeping on the barrier with a protest in the background.

Inside Europe, border checks are creeping back

Voters and politicians are worried about unauthorised migrants

ASML Cleanroom EUV lithography systems

The EU is worried about sensitive exports to competitors and foes

A lot of bureaucracy will ensue

A day of drama in the Bundestag

Friedrich Merz, Germany’s probable next chancellor, takes a huge bet and triggers uproar

Amid talk of a ceasefire, Ukraine’s front line is crumbling

An ominous defeat in the eastern town of Velyka Novosilka

The French government’s survival is now in Socialist hands

Moderates attempt to move away from the radicals