Russian region declares state of emergency as Kyiv pushes incursion

Ukraine is continuing to pound the Russian border region of Kursk with missiles and drones, as Kyiv presses an incursion that US President Joe Biden calls a “real dilemma” for the Kremlin’s leader.

Four Ukraine-launched missiles were destroyed over Kursk and the whole region was under air raid alerts on and off most of the night, its regional acting governor says.

Kyiv said on Tuesday it had taken control of 74 settlements in Kursk, a week after thousands of Ukrainian soldiers launched a startling attack through the Russian border.

In the Russian border area of Belgorod, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov declares a regionwide state of emergency, citing continued attacks by Ukrainian forces.

“The situation in the Belgorod region continues to be extremely difficult and tense,” Gladkov says in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app.

Daily shelling by the Ukrainian armed forces destroyed houses, killing and wounding civilians, he adds.

“Therefore, we are making a decision, starting today, to declare a regional emergency situation throughout the Belgorodd region … with a subsequent appeal to the government to declare a federal emergency situation,” he says.