Putin vows "worthy response" to Ukraine's attack on border regions

MOSCOW, Russia

Ukraine's attack on the Russian border will receive a "worthy response" and the Russian military's main task is to knock the Ukrainian forces out of Russian territories, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday.

"The enemy will certainly receive a worthy response, and all the goals facing us will undoubtedly be achieved," the Russian leader said at an operational meeting via videoconference on the situation in the border regions.

Putin said it is obvious that the Ukrainian army will continue to try to destabilize the situation in the border zone in order to destabilize the internal political situation in Russia.

The president called on the Russian Federal Security Service, together with the National Guard, to ensure the regime of the counter-terrorism operation and an effective fight against Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups in the border regions.

Ukrainian forces crossed the Russian border last Tuesday and broke into parts of Russia's Kursk region. Currently, the Ukrainian military holds 28 settlements in the region, according to Alexei Smirnov, the region's acting governor.

The situation in the Kursk region is complicated, Smirnov said, adding that about 120,000 people had been evacuated.

In the neighboring Belgorod region to the south, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov also said on Monday the region has begun relocating its residents in the Krasnoyaruzhsky District to safer places amid increased military activity near the Ukrainian border.