The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word RUSSIA
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
R
U
S
S
I
A
More clues leading to the result RUSSIA
- A leather article is certainly short from the bottom
- Country taking power from an older one
- State, traditionally powerful one, withdrawing quietly
- Leader of old kingdom leaves country
- American footballer called for country
- Country airs active round America
- Land one flying, over the radio
- Country person wasting no time in conversation?
- Strain rising when helm of Ukrainian ship caught by neighbour
- Sport is as frenzied in the country
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Aggressor starts to raid Ukraine" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case aggressor starts to raid ukraine = russia.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.