Putin claimed the goal of the reported breakthrough was "to get a trump card for the exchange of territories in possible negotiations" and to create an "information effect."
Raid of the Freedom of Russia Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps, and the Siberian Battalion in Belgorod and Kursk oblasts, is an attempt to disrupt the “elections” in Russia and “get a trump card” in the upcoming peace talks, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin claimed in an interview with Russian propagandists Russia 1 and RIA Novosti on March 13.
Fighting between anti-Kremlin militias and the Russian army is taking place in five settlements near the Ukrainian border, Oleksii Baranovskyi, a fighter with the Freedom of Russia Legion, said on air on March 13.
Reuters/StringerAnti-Kremlin Russian fighters have begun urging their fellow citizens to abandon their homes in the Belgorod and Kursk regions as part of a militant campaign aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.The group, made up of three different battalions known as the Freedom of Russia Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps, and the Siberian Battalion, issued a statement Wednesday warning that it would be attacking shortly, urging Russians to evacuate.“Putin’s killers are carrying out massive att
"The shelling of Ukraine from the territory of Belgorod must stop!" the joint statement said. The militias said they have been "forced" to fire upon Russian military positions in the area.