Putin Calls Ukraine's Attack On Russia's Kursk Border A Big Provocation

Russian President Vladimir Putin/Obviously Gavril Grigorov/POOL/TASS

JAKARTA - Russian President Vladimir Putin called the Ukrainian attack on Russia's Kursk territory a major provocation.

The Kyiv regime has launched another major provocation, Putin told members of the Russian government about Kursk's attack.

Putin said Ukrainian troops carried out indiscriminate shootings against civilians in the Kursk region.

Previously, Ukraine was reportedly continuing to launch airstrikes on Russia's Kursk border region. Its defense system destroyed four drones overnight.

The Russian Defense Ministry sent a reserve force on Tuesday to help expel hundreds of Ukrainian fighters backed by tanks from Kursk, in the biggest ground offensive to Russian territory during the war, which has now lasted more than two years.

The situation is 'controllable', said Alexei Smirnov, acting governor of Russia's southwestern region, reported by Reuters, Wednesday, August 7.

All emergency services are on high alert, he said. The Russian ministry called on the public to donate blood to fill medical supplies.

The area is under dozens of airstrike warnings over the past 24 hours, according to a Smirnov post.

As of Wednesday morning, there were no reports of any new land battles.

Five people were killed, including two ambulance crew, and 20 injured, among them six children, in fighting that broke out on Tuesday.