A sign in Ukraine's Sumy region leading to the southwestern Russian city of Kursk. Photo: EPA-EFE/NIKOLETTA STOYANOVA

Russia has opened a criminal case against two Italian journalists who reported from the Ukraine-held town of Sudzha in the country’s southwestern Kursk region last week, state news agency RIA Novosti reported on Saturday.

Reporter Stefania Battistini and cameraman Simone Traini of Italian public broadcaster Rai were to be investigated by Russia’s FSB security service for having “illegally crossed Russia’s state border” to reach Sudzha, RIA Novosti said, with a “legal assessment” of a report by CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh from the town also being carried out.

Rai CEO Roberto Sergio said in a statement shortly before the criminal case was opened on Saturday that Battistini and Traini would temporarily return to Italy for their “safety and personal protection”.

Battistini and Traini’s report is believed to be the first by a Western news agency from Russia’s Kursk region since Ukraine launched its surprise incursion into Russian territory on 6 August.

Footage published by Rai on Wednesday showed its team of journalists travelling to Sudzha accompanied by a Ukrainian military escort before speaking with residents who remained in the town, which is currently under the control of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).

On Friday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry summoned Italian Ambassador to Moscow Cecilia Piccioni to express its “decisive protest” at Rai’s report, accusing the journalists of “grossly violating Russian law and the basic rules of journalistic ethics” to “whitewash the crimes of the Kiev regime”.

Piccioni, meanwhile, stressed that the reporters had acted “independently and autonomously”, Reuters said.

In a joint statement, Rai’s union of journalists Usigrai and Italy’s national press union FNSI called Moscow’s threats to investigate Battistini and Traini “unacceptable”, adding that “journalism is not a crime” and “reporting is not done with prior authorisations”.