Russia has launched rocket attacks on the capital of Ukraine.
(Photo: IMAGO/VXimages.com)
Dusseldorf The war situation in Ukraine is escalating dramatically. While Russia launched rocket attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities on Monday, Belarus will cooperate more closely with Moscow militarily.
Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko announced the formation of a joint regional military unit of his country’s armed forces with the Russian army. He had agreed this with Russian President Vladimir Putin, said Lukashenko, according to the Belta state agency.
“The basis of this unit is the armed forces of the Republic of Belarus.” The reason for the step is the growing tension on the border with Ukraine, said the 68-year-old. He learned through unofficial channels that Ukraine was planning attacks on Belarusian territory. It is therefore necessary to think about how the security of the country can be increased.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said only that Putin and Lukashenko constantly discuss a variety of areas in their bilateral talks, including defense. This is provided for in the military document of the union state that both countries form.
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Lukashenko, also referred to as the “last dictator in Europe”, had always declared that he did not want to be drawn into the war. At the same time, given the situation, he did not rule it out. From the very beginning, Belarus has provided its military bases for the Russian attacks on Ukraine, much to the chagrin of Ukraine. From Ukraine’s point of view, Belarus is already a party to the war.
Putin threatens even harder blows
Carlo Masala, an expert on international politics, wrote on Twitter that Lukashenko was taking a high risk. Neither the military nor the Belarusian population is very sympathetic to the participation of the Belarusian armed forces.
>> Read also: Crimean bridge explosion: Putin retaliates
Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened Ukraine with retaliation in the event of what he has described as more acts of terrorism. The explosion on the Crimean bridge over the weekend, for which he blames the neighboring country, is an act of terrorism, Putin said in a televised speech. In response, Russian long-range missiles hit energy, military and communications facilities in Ukraine in the morning.
At the same time, at a Security Council meeting, the Russian President threatened Kyiv with an even tougher “response” if the “Ukrainian attacks” continued. “In case of further attempts to commit terrorist acts on our territory, Russia will react harshly,” says Putin. The answers would then be of the same magnitude as the threats to Russia.
According to Ukrainian sources, the Russian armed forces fired 83 rockets into Ukraine in the morning. The Ukrainian army had shot down at least 43 rockets by 11:35 a.m., said Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maljar. Nevertheless, there were several deaths.
No other country is as uncompromisingly behind Russia as Belarus.
(Photo: dpa)
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Russia deliberately wanted to cause the greatest possible damage among the people with the nationwide rocket attacks in the morning. Ukraine’s energy infrastructure was targeted, says Zelenskyj in a video message showing him in front of his presidential office in Kyiv. “The second goal is the people. This point in time and these targets were specially chosen to cause as much damage as possible,” he accused the Russian leadership. “They want panic and chaos, they want to destroy our energy system.”
Russian missiles apparently hit Kyiv
The German government condemns the Russian rocket attacks on Ukraine, which destroyed civilian infrastructure and caused deaths and injuries. That says government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit in Berlin. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has already called the Ukrainian President and promised Germany’s help in rebuilding civilian infrastructure.
According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyj, the seven leading Western industrial nations (G7) are to hold a special meeting because of the Russian rocket attacks on Ukraine. He had agreed on this with Chancellor Olaf Scholz as incumbent G7 chairman, Selenskyj announced on Twitter. He himself will report on the attacks by the Russian Federation. He also spoke to Scholz about increasing the pressure on Russia and helping to restore the damaged infrastructure.
With agency material.
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