The fighting in the Kursk region has become the first invasion of Russia since the Second World War; Putin’s authority is under threat.

Bloomberg writes, “Putin’s invasion of Ukraine led to Ukrainian intervention in the Russian Federation,” which confused the Kremlin. The border breach in the Kursk region caught the Russian military by surprise. For the first time since World War II, a foreign country’s army has invaded Russian Federation territory.

Ukraine has not officially commented on the events in the Kursk region, which has given rise to various theories – from an attempt to seize the territory as a potential bargaining chip in future negotiations with Moscow to a diversionary tactic to relieve pressure across the broad front line.

The incident exposed the weaknesses of Russia’s border defense and undermines the Kremlin’s carefully constructed image of Putin as the “protector of ordinary Russians.” Instead of inspiring Russian confidence, the war is now increasingly impacting the homeland.

For Ukraine, it will strengthen the argument that American and European allies should not fear Russian threats of escalation.