President Vladimir Putin has a message for the Russian region where Ukraine has seized more than 1,000 square kilometers of territory: Don’t blame me.
Speaking via videoconference to a meeting of Russian politicians, including the governors of Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions, Putin said the “security issues” that had arisen in Kursk were “problems that are the responsibility of the security forces.”
He added that Moscow would work with “local and regional authorities” and “security agencies” to “play a positive role in achieving the goals that we have here.”
Kyiv’s troops invaded Kursk, which borders Ukraine, in a surprise offensive earlier this month, leading the region’s governor to declare a state of emergency.
Ukraine has captured more than 90 Russian settlements in Kursk, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
