War in Ukraine: increase in Russian military personnel, evacuation in the Kursk region… an update on the situation

Every day, Midi Libre takes stock of the situation in Ukraine. This Monday, September 16, 2024, discover the latest news about this conflict.

Russia orders the evacuation of villages on the Ukrainian border in the Kursk region

The acting governor of the Russian Kursk region, which has been the target of a Ukrainian offensive since early August, on Monday ordered the evacuation of residents of villages located less than 15 kilometers from Ukraine for reasons of "security".

"Based on operational information, in order to ensure security, the regional headquarters decided on the compulsory evacuation of settlements in the Rylsky and Khomutovsky districts located in an area up to 15 kilometers from the border with Ukraine", Alexei Smirnov wrote on Telegram. Russia announced last week that it had regained ground against Kiev's forces by launching a counteroffensive.

Putin orders increase in active-duty military personnel by 180,000

Vladimir Putin has ordered by decree to increase the number of Russian military personnel by 180,000 to 2.38 million, the third such decision since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The decree, published on the Kremlin's website on Monday, calls for bolstering the ranks of the active-duty military by 180,000, which would bring the total number of active-duty troops to 1.5 million. Earlier, the Russian president had asked to increase the number of Russian armed forces by 137,000, then 170,000.

The Russian army has recaptured two villages in the Kursk region

The Russian military has regained control of two villages, Uspenovka and Borki, in the Kursk region and is continuing its counteroffensive against Ukrainian forces, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on Monday.

The Russian armed forces have launched a counteroffensive against Ukrainian units that carried out a surprise incursion into the Kursk region in western Russia on August 6. The villages of Uspenovka and Borki are about 20 kilometers apart on the border with the Ukrainian region of Sumy.

Ukraine claims to control about 100 villages in the Kursk region, an area of ​​about 1,300 square kilometers. Kursk Region Governor Alexei Smirnov ordered Monday the evacuation of all settlements in Rylsky and Khomutovsky districts, about fifteen kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Monday on X that Kiev was inviting the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to intervene in Kursk Oblast to demonstrate “its adherence to international humanitarian law”.

Kremlin denounces “provocation” of Ukraine inviting the UN to the Kursk region

The Kremlin on Monday denounced as a "pure provocation" the invitation of Ukraine which proposed to the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to visit the part of the Russian Kursk region under the control of Kiev's forces.

“We hope that such provocative statements will not be taken into account by their recipients,”, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Russia launches about 20 drones towards Kiev

Russia launched a new airstrike on Kiev overnight from Sunday to Monday, as Ukrainian air defense systems destroyed about 20 drones heading towards the capital, the Ukrainian military said.

The commander of the military administration of the Ukrainian capital said via Telegram that “Russian attacks drones were heading towards kyiv from different directions and in separate groups". "According to preliminary information, there are no casualties or damage in kyiv", Serhiy Popko said, adding that the scale of the attack would be known only later on Monday.

There was no immediate comment from Russia. Air raid sirens sounded in kyiv for about three and a half hours. Reuters journalists heard a series of loud explosions that appeared to be from air defense system activity.