Belgorod: Russian paramilitary group vows more incursions

RDK commander Denis Kapustin said the cross-border raid was a success

The head of the Russian paramilitary group that said it was behind a cross-border raid into Russia from Ukraine has vowed more such incursions.

"I think you will see us again on that side," said Denis Kapustin, who leads the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK).

Russia said it had repelled the raid, killing more than 70 saboteurs. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu promised a "harsh response" to any future incursions.

Ukraine denies involvement in the raid.

Denis Kapustin is known as a Russian nationalist, and his group openly says it wants a mono-ethnic Russian state.

The RDK along with the Liberty of Russia Legion (LSR) claimed Monday's raid into Belgorod region.

Speaking on Wednesday to reporters on the Ukrainian side of the border, its leader, whose nom de guerre is White Rex, said: "We're satisfied with the result [of the raid]."

He said his group had managed to seize "some weapons", including an armoured personnel carrier, and take prisoners during the operation - before leaving Russian territory after 24 hours.

He said two RDK fighters were injured, denying claims by the Russian military about heavy casualties inflicted on the saboteurs.

Separately, the LSR said two of its fighters had been killed and 10 injured.

The casualty claims by the warring sides have not been independently verified.

At the news briefing Denis Kapustin denied reports that his fighters were using weapons provided by Western allies to Ukraine to help defend itself against Russia's full-scale invasion launched in February 2022.

Russia describes the RDK and LSR as Ukrainian militants - but Kyiv says they come from two anti-Kremlin paramilitaries.

Both groups say they want to dismantle Russian President Vladimir Putin's regime, and have in the past been described as part of an international legion involved in Ukraine's territorial defence.

Mr Kapustin said that Ukraine only provided support to the RDK with medical supplies, petrol and food.

• Who are the fighters infiltrating Russia from Ukraine?

The RDK came to prominence in March 2023, taking part in a cross-border raid in Russia's Bryansk region which it said involved 45 people.

Asked on Wednesday about reported neo-Nazis in the group's ranks, its leader responded that "it's all a question of perception" and went on to describe himself as having "traditionalist" and "patriotic" views.

In 2020, a Ukrainian investigative website alleged he had links to neo-Nazi groups and Mr Kapustin has spoken in the past of belonging to a movement of football hooligans.

Earlier on Wednesday, Mr Shoigu briefed Russian military officials on Moscow's response to the Belgorod raid.

He said "more than 70 Ukrainian nationalists" had been killed and the rest pushed back into Ukraine.

"We will continue to respond to such actions by Ukrainian militants promptly and extremely harshly," the Russian defence minister added.

Moscow says several civilians were injured during the incursion.

Russia released photos of abandoned or damaged Western military vehicles - but some experts say the images are staged

Russia posted pictures of destroyed US vehicles apparently at the scene of the fighting in the Belgorod region - but some Ukrainian military experts and bloggers have suggested they could have been staged.

The US said it was sceptical that reports of US-supplied weapons being used in the incursion were true and did not "encourage or enable strikes inside of Russia".

But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the vehicles were evidence of growing Western military involvement in Ukraine.

"It is no secret for us that more and more equipment is being delivered to Ukraine's armed forces. It is no secret that this equipment is being used against our own military," he said.

"We are drawing the appropriate conclusions."

Monday's raid led Moscow to declare a counter-terrorism operation, giving the authorities special powers to clamp down on communications and people's movements. The measures were only lifted the following afternoon.

Belgorod governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said drone attacks on Tuesday night were mostly dealt with by air defences, but some damage was caused to cars, private houses and administrative buildings