⚡Bloomberg: “Kursk is the first time since World War II that another country’s official land army has invaded Russia

Yesterday, Putin, grim-faced, summoned his army and security chiefs for an explanation. Furious Russian military bloggers accused top officials of staggering incompetence.

Ukraine has said nothing about the mission or its purpose. Theories abound, from an attempt to seize territory as a potential bargaining chip in future negotiations with Moscow to a diversionary tactic to relieve pressure on Ukraine’s stretched defenses by drawing Russian forces away from the front lines.

The episode exposes the fragility of Russia’s border defenses, with a growing number of Russian troops fighting directly in Ukraine. It has boosted Ukrainian morale.

And it has also undermined the Kremlin’s carefully crafted image of Putin as a protector of ordinary Russians.

Instead, the war he started in Ukraine is now increasingly spilling over into Russia, where people in border regions live under constant threat of shelling and drone strikes on key industrial sites.

For Ukraine, this is likely to bolster Kyiv's argument that U.S. and European allies should not fear the Kremlin’s threats of escalation, and that Ukraine should be allowed to fight Moscow in any way it sees fit to hasten the end of the war.”