Ukraine military says it prevented Russian saboteurs from crossing northeast border

Oct 12 (Reuters) – Ukraine has thwarted an attempt overnight by a Russian saboteur group to cross its northeastern border in the Sumy region, Serhiy Naev, commander of the joint forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said on Thursday.

“The saboteurs tried to cross the state border of Ukraine and intended to move further towards one of the civilian critical infrastructure facilities,” he wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

The eight-member group was repelled by Ukrainian fire, he said, adding that there were no losses among Ukrainian troops.

Ukraine said it had destroyed 28 Russian drones overnight, while authorities in the south said strikes damaged Odesa port warehouses and private residences, wounding one person.

The air force said on the Telegram messaging app. “Enemy UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) were flying in different directions, so air defence was working in at least six regions of Ukraine.

The Defence Forces of the South of Ukraine meanwhile said Russia had sent another volley of attack drones towards port infrastructure along the Danube river.

Nato defence ministers will continue to meet in Brussels today, after Volodymyr Zelenskiy made a surprise appearance at the summit yesterday, saying he fears that the aftermath of Hamas’s attack on Israel and US politics could threaten military support for his country.