Moscow [Russia], March 3: Russian President Vladimir Putin called a special meeting of the National Security Council on Thursday, following reports from his own intelligence service about fighting with Ukrainian units on Russian territory.
A planned trip to the Caucasus on Friday was cancelled at short notice.
The topic of the Security Council meeting is unknown, but there has long been speculation that Russia could officially declare war on Ukraine and order a further mobilization of hundreds of thousands of troops for the army.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, when asked by journalists whether the gathering of senior defence officials would upgrade what Moscow continues to call a "special military operation," said: "I don't know, I can't say." It is a punishable offence in Russia to refer to its operation in Ukraine as a war.
Another outcome of the meeting could be greater restrictions on civil rights and steps towards a war and command economy. Also on Thursday, Putin accused Ukraine of terror after reports of fighting in the south-western Russian border region of Bryansk.
It was "another terrorist attack and another crime," the Russian president said during a video conference.
Russia started the war against Ukraine when it invaded its neighbour, in an unprovoked attack, on February 24, 2022.
Earlier, the domestic intelligence service FSB spoke of heavy fighting with "Ukrainian nationalists" in Bryansk. Kiev has denied responsibility for the incidents, saying it came from targeted Russian disinformation.
According to Russian sources, a motorist was killed and a 10-year-old child was injured in the Bryansk region by shelling from what the Russians called Ukrainian sabotage forces.
Source: Qatar Tribune