Russian President Putin makes first visit to Kursk since Ukrainian incursion

Moscow [Russia], May 21 (ANI): Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday visited the border region of Kursk, marking his first appearance there since Russian forces ejected Ukrainian troops from the area last month, Al Jazeera reported, citing the Kremlin statement.
This visit comes after at least six servicemen were killed in Ukraine and 10 others wounded in a missile attack on Tuesday, Ukraine's national guard said on Wednesday.
"An internal investigation into the incident is underway. The commander of the military unit has been suspended, and the necessary information has been passed on to law enforcement agencies," Ukraine's national guard said in a statement.
Notably, Ukrainian forces launched a bold incursion into Kursk in August 2024, claiming nearly 1,400 square kilometres (540 square miles) of Kursk - the first time since World War II that Russia has been invaded.
As per Al Jazeera, Russia has mostly had the advantage on the battlefield since the end of 2023, with the exception of Kursk.
Russia said in late April that it had ejected Ukrainian troops from the region.
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that during his visit, Putin met with local volunteer organisations in Kursk and inspected a nuclear power plant in the region.
According to Al Jazeera, he was accompanied by Sergei Kiriyenko, the Kremlin's first deputy chief of staff, and acting governor Alexander Khinshtein.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's Sumy border region has come under intensifying attacks in recent months. Russia's defence ministry had on Tuesday evening said it had launched a ballistic missile attack on the Ukrainian site.
"During reconnaissance activities ... a training camp" for Ukrainian special forces was "detected," it said in a social media post.
"Based on the received coordinates, an Iskander missile strike was launched."
Russia also published footage showing the hit on what it said was a training camp in a wooded area.
Aerial footage showed one strike, sparking a large fire and sending a plume of thick black smoke billowing into the air.
Meanwhile, Russia said it intercepted 159 drones launched by Ukraine over 12 hours, targeting several Russian regions, including Moscow, the military said in a statement on Wednesday.
The drones mostly targeted Russian regions bordering Ukraine and were launched on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, said a defence ministry statement.
On Wednesday, the Ukrainian military said it had struck a semiconductor device plant in a drone attack on Russia's Oryol region. (ANI)