Aug 21, 2024 

Russia has lashed out at the alleged presence of American journalists and soldiers in its territory, saying this contradicts the U.S.’s assertions of noninvolvement in Ukraine’s ongoing cross-border operation.

On August 6, Kyiv launched a surprise incursion into Russia’s Kursk region. It has since captured dozens of settlements and continues to advance deep behind enemy lines.

The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Stephanie Holmes, the deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, to its offices on Tuesday.

According to a release on its website, the ministry expressed its “strong protest” to Holmes “in connection with provocative actions of American reporters who illegally infiltrated Kursk Oblast for propagandist reporting of crimes of Kyiv’s regime.”

The ministry also claimed to have seen evidence “of the participation of an American [private military company] on the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the invasion of the territory of the Russian Federation.”

PMCs are non-state-affiliated organizations that provide combat or security services in exchange for payment. They have played a significant role on both sides of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

The Wagner Group, Russia’s largest PMC, was a notable presence on the front lines during the early stages of the conflict, and its mercenaries became notorious for their ruthless treatment of both Ukrainian soldiers and civilians under the auspices of the Russian government.

On the Ukrainian side, the now-defunct Mozart Group—founded by a former U.S. Marine colonel—comprised soldiers from Europe and the U.S., and it focused on training and equipping Kyiv’s forces.

Russia did not name the news agency or paramilitary organization allegedly involved, though Reuters reported that Moscow seemed to be referring to reporting by the Washington Post and CNN from the Russian town of Sudzha, which has been under Ukrainian control since August 16.

Newsweek has contacted the U.S. Department of State for comment regarding the potential involvement of U.S. soldiers in Kursk.

Despite Russia’s claims to the contrary, the U.S. has said it offered only tacit support for the Kursk raid, with President Joe Biden declining to say more than that the operation was “creating a real dilemma for Putin.”

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, however, the involvement of an American PMC in these operations ran “counter to the Biden administration’s assertions that it was allegedly not involved in the attack by Ukrainian neo-Nazis on Russia” and that this proved “the United States, as a direct participant in the conflict, is involved in Vladimir Zelensky’s malicious plans.”

The ministry went on to say that an investigation would be launched into the “American citizens involved in these crimes.” It added that those who cross over into Russian territory “automatically become a legitimate military target for the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.”

https://www.newsweek.com/russia-protests-american-soldiers-kursk-1942273