The Russian Invasion|The Battles File.

A road in Belgorod in February this year. Vadim Ghirda / AP

 

The Russian Invasion|The Battles File. 

Russia begins investigation into "terrorist crime" in Belgorod  

 

Russia says it has launched a "terrorist investigation" into the attacks in the Belgorod region and accuses a "sabotage group" of crossing the border from Ukraine. 

 

"A criminal case has been opened following an attack on settlements in the Belgorod region," reads a message according to the AFP news agency.  

 

The Reuters news agency writes that it "appears to be" one of the largest cross-border incursions from Ukraine since the war began. Ukraine denies the allegations but says it is monitoring the situation.  

 

Yesterday there were reports of drone attacks in the region and during the day two Russian anti-Putin partisan groups claimed to have captured villages in the border region. In Moscow, it is described as a Ukrainian sabotage attempt.  

 

The situation is difficult to assess, but it looks like it could be a Ukrainian attempt to use Russia's own tactics against Russia. That's what Johan Huovinen, lieutenant colonel who teaches at the Swedish Defense Academy in Stockholm, told TT.

   

File. Russian rockets are fired from the Belgorod region towards Ukraine on May 14. Vadim Belikov / AP 

 

Governor: Drone attacks on Belgorod last night  

 

The Russian region of Belgorod, which is close to the border with Ukraine, was hit overnight by drone attacks. This is what governor Vyacheslav Gladkov writes on Telegram according to CNN. 

 

According to Gladkov, two homes were hit in Grajvoron, and in the village of Borisovka, an office building and a house were said to have been hit in two separate attacks.  

 

On Telegram, he urges the residents, who were evacuated from their homes yesterday, not to return: "It's not worth it yet," he writes, according to The Guardian.  

 

According to CNN, no people have been injured and no one has claimed responsibility for the attacks. But on Monday, two Russian anti-Putin partisan groups said they had captured villages in the border region. 

 

Lieutenant Colonel Joakim Paasikivi told SvD on Monday that he is convinced that Ukraine is involved in the fighting in Belgorod.  

 

- Of course, this cannot be implemented without Ukrainian approval, he said then.  

 

President Vladimir Putin. Mikhail Klimentyev / AP 

 

"Russia faces an increased threat - can fatten the image of the victim" 

 

Russia faces an increasingly serious threat to its security in the border areas with Ukraine. This is what the British Ministry of Defense writes in its latest update.  

 

Between May 19 and 22, Russian security forces reportedly clashed with partisans in Belgorod on at least three occasions. Russian anti-Putin groups have claimed attacks in the area, but this has not been independently confirmed.  

 

The Ministry of Defense specifically mentions the drone attacks on Grajvoron late on Monday and also points to losses of fighter jets and attacks on railway lines.  

 

"Russia will most likely use these events to support the official narrative that it is the victim of the war," the update said.  

 

Who are the anti-Putin militias?  

 

* The Russian Legion of Freedom is a paramilitary group formed in March 2022 in Ukraine. The group is said to consist of over 100 defectors from the Russian army and other Russian volunteers.  

 

* Described as part of the Ukrainian International Legion, which consists of volunteers who want to fight for Ukraine. According to the company commander, they want to "protect Ukrainians from real fascists".  

 

* The Russian Volunteer Corps is another Ukraine-based paramilitary group made up of Russian outspoken neo-Nazis. The representatives also claim to be part of the International Legion of Ukraine, but Ukraine claims that it is independent.