Smoke rises above buildings in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in Donetsk, Ukraine on February 19, 2024. Photo: IC

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday called the alleged incursion by Ukraine a "large-scale provocation" after Ukrainian forces reportedly launched a "massive attack" in Russia's Kursk region, which has reportedly resulted in at least five civilian deaths and more than 30 injuries. 

Experts predicted that the attack will undoubtedly exacerbate the situation on the battlefield and dash the hard-won hopes for peace talks that the international community has worked hard to achieve.

CNN reported that it would "mark the first incursion of its kind from Ukraine" in the two-year conflict if the attack is confirmed.

A state of emergency has been declared in the Kursk region of Russia. Russian officials said the incursion resulted in five civilian deaths and 31 injuries, six of whom were children.

There were up to 1,000 Ukrainian troops, as well as 11 tanks and more than 20 armored combat vehicles entering Russia near the town of Sudzha on Tuesday morning, BBC reported citing Moscow sources.

"The choice of timing for this attack has mainly taken into consideration the opportunity presented by the change in the Russian military leadership and the rotation of frontline Russian troops," Cui Heng, a scholar from the Shanghai-based China National Institute for SCO International Exchange and Judicial Cooperation, told the Global Times.

"With Western voices now calling for negotiations with Russia, Ukraine wants to demonstrate its combat capabilities and determination at this juncture to avoid being quickly abandoned," Cui said. 

A Ukrainian military member stands next to the first General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon sent to Ukraine on August 4, 2024. Ukrainian pilots have started flying the US-made F-16 fighter jets for operations. Photo: VCG

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the White House will be reaching out to Kiev "to get a little better understanding" of the situation in Kursk, adding that the US "has not changed its policy of authorizing Ukraine to use American-supplied weapons to target imminent threats just across the border," Ukrainska Pravda reported.

The US has exposed its hypocritical duplicity as it claims to "restrain" the use of American-made weapons on the one hand while in reality, indulging Kiev with financial and military support. To some extent, the attack on Russian targets is a result of the US' fueling the fire, Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday confirmed that his country has received and is already using its first batch of American-made F-16 fighter jets.

The US' actions have not been downplayed despite international efforts for dialogue; on the contrary, it is hindering a peaceful resolution to the crisis against the will of the global majority, Li said.