2023-05-23 11:19:00
Ukraine – According to officials, many residents have fled their homes after gunmen entered the Russian border region of Belgorod near Ukraine.
An abandoned house near Bachmut that was damaged by shelling. © Libkos/AP/dpa
The governor of the region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, spoke of at least eight people injured. There were no dead civilians. He also issued a terror alert on Monday evening.
He spoke of a tense situation after the border region came under fire. According to Gladkow, the small Russian town of Graivoron and at least two villages were affected.
Several residents were taken to the hospital with injuries. There was also talk of damaged houses.
Game changer: Ukraine will probably receive F-16 jets
It is unclear what exactly happened and whether the operation was still running that night. Gladkow wrote that the military, the FSB domestic secret service, which is also responsible for border protection, and the National Guard are deployed.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (45) returned to his home country after the summits in Saudi Arabia and Japan.
All current developments in the Ukraine can be found here in the TAG24 live ticker.
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May 23, 1:04 p.m.: Kremlin sees attack on Belgorod as reason to continue the war
According to the Kremlin, the attack on the western Russian region of Belgorod proves the need to continue the war against Ukraine.
“This confirms once again that Ukrainian fighters are continuing their activities against our country,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday, according to the Interfax news agency. That requires efforts from Russia. “These efforts will continue, as will the military special operation to prevent such incursions in the future.” Moscow describes its war of aggression against Ukraine as a special military operation.
Fighting broke out on Monday in the Graivoron district of the Belgorod region, right on the border with Ukraine. Volunteer corps, made up of Russians but fighting on the side of Kiev in the Ukraine war, took responsibility for the attack. The leadership of Ukraine, on the other hand, has officially distanced itself from the attack. According to the authorities, at least eight civilians were injured and nine towns were evacuated.
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May 23, 11:57 a.m.: Pistorius reluctant to possible Taurus delivery to Ukraine
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (63) has expressed reservations about the proposal to deliver German Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine.
He does not want to go into every weapon system and give a hypothetical answer to a hypothetical question, said the SPD politician on Tuesday on the sidelines of the EU defense ministers’ meeting in Brussels. “I think it’s proven that we don’t do this all the time or draw red or white lines,” said Pistorius. Ukraine should be given significant support and dealt with responsibly.
At the same time, Pistorius declared that he “believed that we should support Ukraine with all the systems permissible under international law that it needs to win this war and that we are able to provide”. When asked whether he also saw a danger in a possible delivery of F-16 fighter jets, he explained: “I see no risk of escalation at this point.”
Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (63) has expressed reservations about the proposal to deliver German Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. ©Virginia Mayo/AP
May 23, 10:38 a.m.: Fighting in and around Bakhmut dies down
According to Ukrainian sources, fighting in and around the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut has subsided.
“Our troops control the south-western outskirts of the city in the district of “Plane,”” Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maljar told Telegram on Tuesday. The Russian units would continue to comb the neighborhoods they controlled for Ukrainian soldiers.
Fighting continues in the suburbs. There, the Russian troops had partly gone over to the defense. The Ukrainians gained “insignificant” territory north and south of Bakhmut.
Ukrainian soldiers drive armored vehicles along a road to their positions near Bakhmut in the Donetsk region. © Efrem Lukatsky/AP
May 23, 8:29 a.m.: Fighting in the Russian border region near Ukraine continues
According to the authorities, fighting in several towns bordering Ukraine in the western Russian region of Belgorod continues.
“The Ministry of Defense and other security structures continue to clean up the territory,” Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov told Telegram on Tuesday. According to previous knowledge, there were no fatalities among the civilians, but it was too early for the residents to return, he explained.
Fighting broke out in the district of Grayvoron on the border with Ukraine on Monday. According to Gladkow, a “spy and sabotage squad” had entered the area. Two volunteer corps, made up of Russian citizens who are fighting on the side of Kiev in the war in Ukraine, claimed responsibility for the attack.
The goal is to create a demilitarized zone along the border to prevent constant shelling of Ukrainian territory, they said. Kiev denied any involvement in the action.
May 23, 6:14 a.m.: EU defense ministers discuss ammunition for Ukraine
The defense ministers of the European Union will discuss further support for Ukraine in Brussels on Tuesday.
It is about the promise of the Europeans to deliver one million artillery shells to Ukraine. The government in Kiev urgently needs the ammunition to defend itself against Russia. According to diplomats, however, the delivery schedules have stalled.
May 23, 2:11 a.m .: CDU politician Kiesewetter for German cruise missiles to Ukraine
The CDU defense expert Roderich Kiesewetter spoke out in favor of the delivery of German Taurus cruise missiles to the Ukraine.
“Ukraine’s partners must now go “all-in” and provide Ukraine with everything that Ukraine can use in combined arms combat and that is permissible under international law,” Kiesewetter told the editorial network Germany (RND/Tuesday). The Taurus missiles with a range of up to 500 kilometers could be a “very helpful contribution from Germany”.
The CDU chairman on the Foreign Affairs Committee said the cruise missiles would bring massive added value to Ukraine in the 15-month war that had now lasted, and would enable “blows against the Russian military infrastructure far behind the front line.”
Roderich Kiesewetter (59, CDU) has spoken out in favor of the delivery of German Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. © Wolfgang Borrs/NDR/dpa
May 22, 8:40 p.m.: BND President sees no cracks in the Putin system
Even 15 months after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the President of the Federal Intelligence Service, Bruno Kahl (60), sees no signs of the President weakening Wladimir Putin (70).
There are no discernible cracks in the Putin system, said the head of Germany’s foreign intelligence service on Monday in front of the Federal Academy for Security Policy (BAKS) in Berlin. Despite isolated criticism – for example, as far as ammunition deliveries are concerned – there are no signs that the system is shaking or imploding. However, this cannot be ruled out either.
“Russia is still capable of waging a war over the long term” – with soldiers being recruited again and again, said Kahl. This also applies to armaments and ammunition. In this respect, there is no question of weakness or that activities could collapse. There are vulnerabilities and surprises – for example in terms of the performance of the armed forces.
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