FROM THE SHADOWS
Daring moment Ukraine’s special forces prowl Russian border before troops stormed into Kursk with rocket salvos & tanks
Watch the troops sneak across the border right under Putin's nose
THIS is the daring moment Ukrainian special forces prowl the border with Russia before its troops stormed Kursk in the surprise attack.
The main Ukrainian force fired rocket barrages and dashed tanks through dragon's teeth defences when they invaded Russia.
12
12
12
12
12
12
But Kyiv's highly trained secret soldiers had already sneaked inside the country and taken out key targets.
New footage released by Ukraine Special Operations Forces shows its soldiers de-mining areas its troops will move through, destroying a road, and sneaking through fields.
The Ukrainians also capture Russian POWs as they soften the border for the main force to strike through.
The soldiers, who all have their faces blurred, speak in hushed tones as they walk through woods, sneak through a hole in barbed wire, and operate communications tech.
Read more on world news
Ukraine's Airborne Assault Troops Command released footage of the initial hours of the attack yesterday.
That shows missile strikes and Ukrainian tanks push easily through open fields and built-up areas.
Even Russia's "elite" FSB officers were forced to wave white flags on home soil as the main Ukrainian force blitzed the the Sudzha border checkpoint.
The official channel of the Air Assault Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said it was “a day that will go down in the history of the Russo-Ukrainian war.
Most read in The Sun
“Careful preparation, planning, surprise, high morale, and information silence were crucial in the initial phase of the operation.”
Russia had also guarded the border with young, poorly trained conscripts who humiliated Putin as the Ukrainians strolled through.
Vids reveal first moments of Ukraine's Kursk siege with explosive opening salvos
Russians fleeing their homes in Kursk have vented their fury at Putin saying the border was defended by only “a couple of conscripts with one machine gun between them”, .
Ukrainian special forces troops have also been trained by the US as they remould them into Western-style warriors.
Another clip showed 100 trembling troops lying face down on the ground after giving up the fight.
Putin has become the first Russian leader to lose control over part of his country to a foreign state since WW2.
12
12
12
12
Russia's regions of Kursk, Bryansk and Belgorod share a massive 720-mile border with Ukraine - including a 152-mile section in the Kursk region.
The surprise attack caught Russia off guard, with its best troops already fighting in Ukraine.
The offensive, launched last Tuesday, has resulted in mass evacuation of Russian civilians in both Kursk and nearby Belgorod.
Some 200,000 civilians have now been evacuated from their homes as Russian officials scramble to deal with the invasion.
Ukrainian troops are now 30km inside Russia 11 days after the attack and are looking to cut Russia's supply lines as they advance.
Kyiv destroyed a key bridge over the over the River Seym in Kursk yesterday in a HIMARS strike near the town of Glushkovsky.
One stretch of the deck collapsed into the river after it was pounded by the direct hit making crossing impossible.
But, satellite images show that Russia has already set up a temporary crossing further down the river.
Putin has been humiliated by the invasion, which captured the same amount of land in eight days as Russia had in eight months.
One media puppet of Putin's has even admitted Russia "could lose" after Ukraine's bold invasion of Kursk.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Filmmaker and propagandist Karen Shakhnazarov sounded the alarm on Russian state TV, going against the grain of Kremlin-controlled media insisting Vlad's troops are keeping the Ukrainians at bay.
He said: "We could lose if such blunders continue. And this isn't defeatism. This isn't scaremongering."
Inside Ukraine's invasion of Russia
Why has the Ukrainian invasion of Russia been so successful?
A DARING Ukrainian military push into Russia's Kursk region has become the largest attack on the country since World War Two.
Kyiv's forces have seized scores of villages, taken hundreds of prisoners and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians.
After more than a week of fighting, Russian troops are still struggling to drive out the invaders.
Why has Russian military been caught so unprepared?
- A long undefended border
Russia's regions of Kursk, Bryansk and Belgorod share a 720-mile border with Ukraine - including a 152-mile section in the Kursk region.
And it only had symbolic protection before Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022.
It's been reinforced since then with checkpoints on key roads and field fortifications in places - but not enough to repel a Ukrainian assault.
The most capable Russian units are fighting in eastern Ukraine, leaving the border vulnerable to attack.
- Element of surprise
Ukrainian troops participating in the incursion were reportedly only told about their mission a day before it began.
The secrecy contrasted with last year's counteroffensive - when Ukraine openly declared its goal of cutting the land corridor to annexed Crimea.
Ukraine ended up failing as troops trudged through Russian minefields and were pummelled by artillery and drones.
But in Kursk, Ukrainian troops didn't face any of these obstacles.
Battle-hardened units easily overwhelmed Russian border guards and small infantry units made up of inexperienced conscripts.
The Ukrainians drove deep into the region in several directions - facing little resistance and sowing chaos and panic.
- Russia's slow response
The Russian military command initially relied on warplanes and choppers to try to stop the onslaught.
At least one Russian helicopter gunship was shot down and another was damaged.
Moscow began pulling in reinforcements, managing to slow Ukraine's advances - but failed to completely block troops.
12
12
Topics