RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

Ukrainian troops in Kursk Region oblivious to being encircled – Putin

Ukrainian military units in Russia’s Kursk Region, which have been cut off from the border, are apparently not aware how bad their situation is, President Vladimir Putin has said.

On Thursday, Putin claimed during a press conference that up to 2,000 Ukrainian troops had been encircled on Russian soil. In a follow-up interview overnight, published by Russian media on Friday, he made more comments on the situation.

Several Ukrainian units have been cut off in the Russian region, where Kiev had launched a cross-border incursion in August, the president said. The troops themselves and their commanders may underestimate the gravity of the situation, he suggested.

”Our feeling is that the people who were encircled are not fully aware that they are in an encirclement,” he said. Russian intelligence suggests that “stable command and control of the troops has been lost.”

Putin added that Ukrainian forces have been trying to break through to the group in question, but had not been successful. Overall, Russian troops are making progress across the conflict frontline, while Kiev is making no gains at all, he reported.

However, neither Ukraine nor its Western backers are willing to end hostilities, so the Russian military must stay focused on the mission, Putin stressed.

The president attributed Russian battlefield successes to a combination of a bolstered defense industry and troops learning how to use modern military technology and to quickly adapt to changes in Ukrainian actions. Some of the innovations in the use of drones are achieved right on the front line and showcase the high engineering skills of Russian service members, he said.

”This experience in warfare with modern tools is very important,”Putin said.

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Russian drone hits Kyiv high-rise building, kills one, injures five

A Russian drone struck a multi-storey residential building in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Friday evening, triggering a fire in the top floors and killing one person and injuring five, officials said.

Serhiy Popko, head of the capital's military administration, said more than 100 residents were evacuated from the high-rise in Solomyanskyi district, just west of the city centre.

Air defence units were in action during the hour-long air raid alert and two hours later a new alert was declared in the city for incoming drones.

"Apartments from the 17th to the 21st storeys were damaged in the apartment building in Solomyanskyi district," Popko wrote on the Telegram messaging app. "Apartments were on fire on the 20th floor."

Mayor Vitali Klitschko said a teenage girl had died. One of the five injured was being treated in hospital and a first aid tent was set up at the site.

Emergency services said the fire had been brought under control. Photos and videos posted on their site showed firefighters using long hoists to battle the blaze.

Popko also said drone fragments had fallen in an open space in the central Shevchenkivskyi district. No casualties were reported.

RT/Reuters