Ukrainian military journalist called the attack on the Belgorod region a pointless PR stunt

Attempts to invade Russian territory in the Belgorod and Kursk regions will only result in media attention, said the chief editor of the publication “Censor.net” Yuriy Butusov.

According to the journalist, it made sense to attack Russian territory in 2022 when Russia retreated from northern Ukraine and did not have time to strengthen its positions. However, by the end of 2022, the Russians began fortifying their positions. “Now they have been fortifying their border for a year and a half; it is already sufficiently prepared for defense. There are many engineering structures, a surveillance system, reconnaissance of various types. There are many drones working there now… The enemy has an advantage in the number of drones on this front,” Butusov said.

In his opinion, these raids can no longer be sudden because there is a “front line that needs to be broken through with battle.” “This is already a general army operation that needs to be prepared,” the journalist said. According to Butusov, such an operation requires a large number of people and equipment. “If we have such reserves, they can be deployed where the enemy presses or where it was necessary to hold Avdiivka,” he believes. He adds that repeating the same maneuvers on the border will not produce the desired effect. “Unfortunately, repetition leads to the fact that the enemy learns, adapts and next time is already waiting. They deliver fire damage. Moreover, there are many videos of this damage on the border from the Russian side. Much more than the losses we show from our side,” Butusov said. He believes that planning a war of attrition “based on PR” is an unjustified risk.