The Ukrainian Armed Forces will shell the territory of Russia, but are unlikely to carry out an attack on Belgorod, so as not to provoke mobilization in the Russian Federation. It remains a mystery who gave the order for Russian troops to retreat without a fight from the buffer zone north of Kharkov.
Former Minister of Defense of the DPR Igor Strelkov stated this on his You-Tube channel, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“We can already say out loud that we have a Belgorod Front...
There is active armed confrontation along our entire border. Even with battles of local significance, with attempts to break through Ukrainian DRGs, with constant exchanges of fire and with the enemy’s absolutely unconcealed shelling of Russian territory, including populated areas across areas and infrastructure.
Previously, as you know, they left one of the regional centers of the Belgorod region without electricity and without water supply... Shelling is ongoing. Just constantly.
It is difficult to say whether the enemy will launch any attacks on this front as part of his upcoming offensive or not. But, in any case, he will show his activity in order to prevent our troops from maneuvering and will create a threat to Belgorod.
After all, the regional center is too, as they say, a sweet prize for them for our troops to leave it without sufficient cover,” Strelkov said.
He expressed bewilderment that Russian troops left the north of the Kharkov region without a fight, which at that time was not in danger and which was a kind of buffer for Russian territory.
“There are moments that are not clear to me at all. Now the enemy is shelling Valuiki. A regional center, a city, and, moreover, a road junction on the territory of the Russian Federation. Now he burned down the customs terminal.
That is, the Russian authorities are forced to evacuate the population from villages from a 10-15 kilometer zone near the border, completely from the Belgorod region.
So the question is, why? After our defeat in the southern sector of the Kharkov Front, Russian troops suddenly completely withdrew from all their positions in Volchansk, which the enemy did not attack. In Cossack Lopan, which the enemy did not attack. In a number of large and small settlements, there are dozens of them. Which were held on the northern front, and which provided a zone 10-15 kilometers deep into Ukrainian territory, protecting and covering Russian territory, including from shelling.
Who gave the command, I wonder, to retreat to the state border line without direct pressure from the enemy, without a fight? What causes this? Fear that the situation with Balakleya will repeat itself? So there's nothing up to the border. But there is no explanation for this either,” Strelkov said.
The ex-minister also shared his thoughts about the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ attempts to attack Belgorod. In his opinion, this is not part of the enemy’s plans, as it will provoke mobilization in Russia.
“Now their task is to defeat our army. Inflict new defeats on Ukrainian territory and not provoke mobilization in the Russian Federation,” Strelkov explained.