President Vladimir Putin said Friday that his military would respond to a string of Ukrainian attacks on Russia that he described as an attempt by Kyiv to derail presidential elections.
Russian border regions this week have been targeted by fatal Ukrainian bombardments and faced repeated incursions by pro-Kyiv militias comprised of anti-Kremlin Russians.
"These strikes by the enemy do not and will not go unpunished," Putin said in televised comments at a meeting with his security council.
"I am sure our people, the people of Russia, will respond to this with even greater unity," he said.
He claimed that Ukrainian assault groups had attempted to gain control of Russian territory at least three times in the Belgorod border region and also in the neighbouring territory of Kursk.
"This is an attempt to interfere with the presidential election," Putin said.
He also claimed that Russian troops had ousted Ukrainian forces from both the Kursk and Belgorod regions and that Russian air defence systems had downed most projectiles fired by Kyiv's forces.
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