A Ukrainian soldier who was allegedly trying to cross over into Russia from the other side of the shared border has been captured and is being held prisoner, the chief of the country’s security forces has claimed.
Speaking at a security council meeting on Monday, FSB Director Alexander Bortnikov said that two sabotage groups had entered Russian territory from the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic earlier in the day.
He added that they had both been destroyed “as a result of the battle by our border guards and the Russian defense ministry.” According to Bortnikov, the situation on the border is now stable and under control.
Earlier on Monday, Russia’s Southern Military District said that it had thwarted a Ukrainian sabotage and renaissance group from violating the country’s border. Five of Kiev’s soldiers were killed and two combat vehicles were destroyed in the firefight, according to Russia’s version of events.
Ukraine’s military, however, has said that Moscow’s claims of an attempted offensive orchestrated by saboteurs are false.