UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed his “deeply shocked” by the Russian retaliatory attacks in Ukraine. “This represents yet another unacceptable escalation of the war and, as always, civilians are paying the highest price,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Monday.
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Valentin Simettinger (text), Peter Pfeiffer (image), Richard Walde (video), Anna Schandl (editing), all ORF.at/agents
Russia fired more than 80 rockets at Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities on Monday. The attacks killed at least 11 people across the country and injured at least 64, according to the Ukrainian civil defense. According to Mayor Vitaly Klitschko, five people died and 52 were injured in Kyiv alone. Many people were on their way to work.
After the rocket attacks, Russian President Vladimir Putin increased threats at the National Security Council. He described the attacks on several Ukrainian cities as a reaction to “terrorist attacks” against “Russian territory”, likely meaning Crimea, which was annexed in 2014.
Lukashenko for joint troops
There was an explosion on the Crimean bridge over the weekend. At the same time, he threatened Kyiv with an even harsher “response” if the “Ukrainian attacks” continued. Another level of escalation became apparent at the same time: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko announced that he wanted to form troops against Ukraine along with Russia.
“We decided to create a regional association of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus,” Lukashenko said, according to Belarusian state news agency Belta, without giving any information about his location. The formation of the group under his orders began two days ago.
He accused Ukraine of preparing an attack on Belarus, which is why this decision has now been taken. According to a report by Russian news agency RIA, Lukashenko also accuses NATO and some European countries of preparing an attack on Belarus, including a nuclear strike.
Revenge across the Crimean Bridge
Earlier, the deputy head of the Russian Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, threatened Ukraine with retaliation for the explosion on the Crimea bridge, which is strategic for Russia, on Saturday. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin spoke yesterday of a “terrorist attack” on the bridge and – like the media in Kyiv – blamed the Ukrainian secret service SBU. However, the SBU has not confirmed an involvement.
How far is peace?
Russia recently responded to Ukraine’s successful offensive in the east of the country with partial mobilization. However, military experts question whether this will quickly have military consequences. How will the war develop over the next few weeks and then into the winter? What are the consequences of partial climate mobilization in Russia? How far is peace?
Discuss with debate.ORF.at!