Chernihiv County in northern Ukraine was subjected to “massive shelling” from neighboring Belarus early on Saturday morning, the Ukrainian army states.
“Twenty rockets were fired from Belarus territory and from the air towards the village of Desna,” the army said in a statement, adding that there were currently no reports of civilian casualties.
According to Ukraine’s military intelligence service, this is the first time that Russian fighter jets have fired on Ukraine from Belarus.
“Today’s shelling is directly related to the Kremlin’s attempt to engage Belarus as a party to the war against Ukraine,” the intelligence service said, according to the state news agency Ukrinform.
Close alliance with Russia
Belarus is closely allied with Russia and during the invasion of Ukraine, the Russian military has had free access to Belarusian territory, however, Belarus is not participating in the war on Russia’s side.
“Dozens of robots have been fired by Russia against our territory this morning. They continue to use Belarusian territory,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak wrote, according to Ukrinform.
Robots against western Ukraine
On Saturday morning, according to Ukrainian information, shelling was also directed at Lviv and Zhytomyr counties.
According to Ukrinform, four people were injured in the Jaroviv district in Lviv County when a “military object” was hit.
According to military sources, the robot shelling came from the Black Sea. The Ukrainian air force is said to have shot down two cruise missiles, while another four reached the target and detonated.