Russian border regions have repeatedly complained about attacks by Ukrainian artillery. The government in Moscow therefore wants to strengthen security measures on site. Some governors are already presenting the first results.
Russia's leadership says it wants to send more units to border regions near Ukraine and better equip the new recruits in the future. "In several regions, especially those close to the border like Belgorod, measures for additional reactions are necessary, which we are working out with both the regions and the government," Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said at a government meeting. Sobyanin was declared regional coordinator in the war by Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin earlier this week.
Eight months after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Moscow is increasingly complaining about the shelling of its own territory. Border regions such as Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk keep reporting artillery fire from the opposite side. Against this background, Sobyanin is now calling for security measures to be increased along the border. However, he did not name any concrete measures.
Kursk Region Governor Roman Starovoit said Sunday that "two reinforced lines of defense" had been completed near the border to ward off a possible attack. Bunkers with loopholes in which soldiers store weapons and ammunition can be seen in photos taken by the authorities. "We are ready to repel any encroachment on our territory," Starovoit wrote on Telegram.
The governor of the neighboring Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, also announced that the construction of defensive structures had begun. Pictures released by the administration over the weekend show two rows of anti-tank obstacles, so-called dragon's teeth, near the border. Military expert Rob Lee speculates on Twitter that the picture offensive could be a reaction to the activities of the Wagner mercenary group. This has been accompanying the construction of the so-called "Wagner Line" in the Ukrainian region of Luhansk for days with photos and videos.
At the government meeting in Moscow, Putin's second coordinator for the military operation, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, also promised more money for equipment. The cabinet has directed more money to procure equipment for the soldiers. "We must ensure that our defenders do not feel that their equipment is lacking," Mishustin said at the session chaired by President Putin.
Complaints have been mounting in recent weeks that many of the soldiers called up by Putin have had to obtain their own equipment because the army stocks had no or only insufficient equipment. The videos of rusty radios, worn backpacks and missing thermal underwear spread on social networks are considered increasingly problematic for the combat morale of the Russian troops.
