Footage Circulates of First Vehicle Captured on Russian Soil
#Russia: The first ever vehicle captured on Russian soil: during the pro-Ukrainian Russian units’ raid over the border into #Belgorod Oblast, a BTR-82A APC was captured at the Grayvoron border crossing checkpoint. pic.twitter.com/nS9gGIkc4E
— ???????? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) May 22, 2023
A video of the members of the Freedom of Russian Legion (FRL) capturing a Russian Army BTR-82A armored personnel carrier (APC) at the Graivoron border crossing checkpoint has gone viral on social media.
The 49-second clip, which was recorded on Monday and then posted to Twitter by Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons), showed the FRL troopers driving back into Ukraine following the raid into the Belgorod Oblast.
The video has been seen more than a half million times as of Tuesday morning.
Raid Into Russia
It was on Monday that the LFR, along with the Russian Volunteer Corps, entered the Belgorod region and overran at least two Russian villages – Kozinka, and Gora-Podol.
“The Legion and the RVC completely liberated Kozinka village, Belgorod Oblast. Forward units have entered Graivoron. Moving on. Russia will be free!” the Legion tweeted.
Russian media reported that heavy fighting occurred and described the raid as a terrorist operation.
“Ukrainian Armed Forces saboteurs group entered the territory of the Graivoronsk district. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation together with the Border Service, the Russian Guard, and the FSB [intelligence service] are taking the necessary measures to eliminate the enemy,” Belgorod Governor Viacheslav Gladkov said in a statement posted to the Telegram social messaging service.
Show of Defiance
Hours after the FRL units conducted the raid on the Russian villages, the blue-and-white tricolor flag that has been adopted by Russia’s anti-war opposition was seen over the heart of Moscow on Monday. The group shared videos on social media that showed the flag being lifted by balloons in the skies over the Russian capital.
In one video, the balloon could be seen over Moscow State University, located just six miles from the Kremlin.
“While we are fighting liberation battles in the border area, our flag is flying in the center of Moscow,” the group said in a post on Telegram. “Russia will be free!”
Russians Fighting for the Future of Russia
Moscow has dismissed the claims that the self-proclaimed partisans are actually Russians, and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov described Monday’s incident as being conducted by Ukrainian “saboteurs.”
However, the FRL has maintained that it is made up of anti-Putin Russian citizens, who have volunteered to fight the regime.
“We are the same Russians as you,” the group has said in a statement. “We are distinguished only by the fact that we no longer wanted to justify the actions of criminals in power and took up arms to defend our and your freedom. But today it’s time for everyone to take responsibility for their future. It’s time to put an end to the Kremlin’s dictatorship.”
The Freedom of Russia Legion was formed in March of last year. It is made up of defectors of the Russian military, as well as other Russian and Belarusian volunteers, and reportedly consists of two battalions, and its members have called for the preservation of a united and indivisible Russia within the borders of 1991.
Author Experience and Expertise
A Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.
