March 2025 Belgorod incursion

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March 2025 Belgorod incursion
Part of attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
Date18 March 2025 [1] – present
(4 days)
Location
Belgorod, Russia
Status Ongoing
Belligerents
Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine Flag of Russia.svg  Russia
Commanders and leaders
Unknown Unknown
Units involved
Ensign of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.svg  Armed Forces of Ukraine

Banner of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (obverse).svg  Russian Armed Forces

Strength
Per Russia (March 18): [1]
Up to 200 fighters
Up to 29+ military vehicles (including 5 tanks, 16 armored personnel carriers, and 3 military engineering vehicles, one UR-77 mine-clearing vehicle, and 4 light vehicles) [3] 		Unknown
Casualties and losses
Per Russia (March 18): [3]
Up to 60 fighters
7 armored vehicles
3 military engineer vehicles
1 light vehicle		 1+ fighters killed, 4+ wounded [4]
1+ civilians killed, 2+ wounded [5]

On 18 March 2025, at around 5:50 AM Moscow time [a] , during the Russo-Ukrainian War, Ukraine launched a cross-border incursion into Russia. They entered Belgorod and clashed with the Russian military.

Contents

Incursion

On March 18 2025, the Russian Ministry of Defence claimed that 5 attacks were done by the Ukrainian Armed Forces during the day. [1] On March 19, Ukrainian forces advanced northwest of Prilesye. Additionally, on March 20, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported that a Russian command post near Demidovka  [ ru ] was destroyed. [7]

The governor of Belgorod Oblast, Vyacheslav Gladkov, stated that "the situation in Krasnoyaruzhsky district remains difficult," noting that the shelling in that district resulted in one soldier killed and four wounded. [4]

Russia's defence ministry claimed that the attack was repelled, as it did during the start of the Kursk offensive launched by Ukraine. [8] The Russian response to the incursion involved a set of coordinated strikes, including 30 air and missile strikes, 13 strikes carried out by combat helicopters, one launch from an Iskander short-range ballistic missile system, a single strike using a Tornado-S multiple-launch rocket system, and two assaults employing the TOS-1A heavy flamethrower system. This response targeted Ukrainian forces positioned approximately five to six miles from the border in the Sumy region of Ukraine. [3]

On March 21, the governor of Belgorod Oblast, Vyacheslav Gladkov, stated that one civilian was killed and two were wounded, with one hospitalized in serious condition, following a Ukrainian drone strike on the village of Dobrino  [ ru ] in the Rakityansky District. The Russian MOD claimed that two drones were shot down by its air defence systems over Belgorod and Kursk. [5] The Institute for the Study of War assessed that Ukrainian forces advanced during the day southwest of Demidovka. According to some Russian milbloggers, Ukrainian forces are consolidating positions on the outskirts of Demidovka and Prilesye, while Ukrainian infantry are attacking near Demidovka, Grafovka, and Prilesye. Meanwhile, the 177th Naval Infantry Regiment  [ ru ] of the 22nd Army Corps was confirmed to be operating in the border area of Belgorod Oblast. [2]

Reactions

Russia

The Russian Ministry of Defence claimed that the attack was launched "to discredit the peace initiatives of U.S. President Donald Trump." [9]

See also

Notes

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Martyniuk, Yevheniia. "After Kursk withdrawal, Ukraine launches surprise offensive in Russia's Belgorod". Euromaidan Press. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 21, 2025" . Retrieved 22 March 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Newdick, Thomas. "Russia Confirms Ongoing Ukrainian Assault On Belgorod Region" . Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  4. 1 2 "Situation in Russia's Belgorod region 'difficult', at least one killed, government says" . Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Ukrainian Drone Strike on Russia's Belgorod Region Kills 1". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 22 March 2025.
  6. ↑ "FACTBOX: What we know about Kiev's thwarted provocation in Belgorod Region". TASS. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  7. ↑ Mappes, Grace; Evans, Angelica; Gasparyan, Davit; Gibson, Olivia; Novikov, Daria; Kagan, Frederick W.; Trotter, Nate; Runkel, William. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 20, 2025". Institute for the Study of War . Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  8. ↑ "Moscow says Ukraine has launched cross-border attack inside Russia". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  9. ↑ Altman, Howard. "Putin-Trump Limited Ceasefire Deal Reached, Ukraine Now Has To Agree" . Retrieved 21 March 2025.
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