Ukrainian troops have apparently been trying to inflict maximum damage on civilian properties in parts of Russia under their control, according to a senior Foreign Ministry official. The Russian Foreign Ministry tasked Rodion Miroshnik with collecting evidence of Ukrainian war crimes in the conflict. Last week, Miroshnik visited Kursk Region, which was targeted by Kiev earlier this month.
Evidence gathered on the ground and interviews conducted with dozens of eyewitnesses suggest that Ukrainian forces are deliberately attempting to devastate settlements within their reach. The official told RIA Novosti that numerous reports of burned out and looted private properties, as well as the deliberate destruction of auxiliary buildings, support this claim. Miroshnik visited some of these homes just hours after they were attacked, where people had been evacuated but their homes were targeted and burned with apparent malice.
In some instances, Ukrainian troops have used incendiary munitions. Local residents told Miroshnik that they saw soldiers firing at homes point-blank from armored personnel carriers, cheering as the buildings went up in flames. Some properties appear to have been hit with shrapnel rockets, armed with thousands of BB pellet-sized metal balls designed to hit enemy manpower in the field with an airburst.
Miroshnik visited a home that was hit by one such rocket. He said there seemed to be nothing left unpierced by the metal balls, resulting in a home without any intact windows and a vehicle turned into a sieve. The walls around were riddled with holes, and even a gas pipeline forty meters away had forty holes in it.
Kiev has deployed thousands of troops into Kursk Region, seizing some border areas but failing to advance deeper into Russian territory. Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky claimed the operation was highly successful, citing the capture of Russian border guards who could be exchanged for Ukrainian troops in Russian custody. His aide Mikhail Podoliak claimed that the attack benefited Kiev by instilling fear in the Russian population and putting pressure on Moscow.
As of Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry estimated Ukrainian military losses in the Kursk operation at up to 7,800. Following the attack, Moscow ruled out peace talks with Kiev, citing its targeting of Russian civilians.