Belarus joins war as hurt Vladimir Putin rains down fire on Ukraine
Vladimir Putin has unleashed a wave of deadly missile attacks on Ukraine’s biggest cities Belarus entered the war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin unleashed a wave of deadly missile attacks on Ukraine’s biggest cities on Monday as Belarus entered the war, announcing it was forming a “regional group of troops” with Moscow.
The co-ordinated attacks, which hit some Ukrainian civilian targets, were in retaliation for the crippling of Mr Putin’s personal project – the Kerch bridge linking Russia to Crimea.
The Russians attacked across the country, launching scores of missiles on Kyiv, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv in southern Ukraine, Dnipro, Khmelnytsky and Zhytomyr.
The Ukrainian State Emergency Service said last night at least 11 people had been killed and 64 injured as a result of the missile strikes.
Lviv, in the far west of Ukraine and considered one of the safest areas of the country, was the subject of several missiles that left the city without electricity and cuts to water supplies.
There was an unconfirmed report of a loud explosion inside the Russian city of Belgorod, which the Kremlin has accused Kyiv of attacking before but which many have seen as false flag attacks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said “unfortunately there are dead and wounded”, accusing the Russian dictator of wanting to “wipe us from the face of the Earth”.
“On the 229th day (since the Russian invasion), they are trying to destroy us and wipe us off the face of the Earth. Destroy our people who are sleeping at home in Zaporizhzhia. Kill people who go to work in Dnipro and Kyiv,” Mr Zelensky said on social media.
“The air alarm does not subside throughout Ukraine. There are missiles striking. Unfortunately, there are dead and wounded. Please do not leave shelters. Take care of yourself and your loved ones. Let’s hold on and be strong.”
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko on Monday night (AEDT) announced his country would join Russia to form “a joint regional group of troops”.
Mr Lukashenko also accused NATO and some European countries of aggression and tried to claim that Ukraine was preparing an attack on Belarus.
After building up supplies of reserve forces from 45,000 to several hundred thousand, Mr Lukashenko told state news agency Belta: “I’ve said already that today Ukraine is not just discussing but planning strikes on the territory of Belarus. We have agreed to deploy a regional grouping of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus.”
Mr Lukashenko said he gave the order to form the joint taskforce with Russia two days ago – which coincides with the timing of the attack on the Kerch bridge – and that it comprises the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus.
Mr Putin ordered the escalation in his war on Ukraine 48 hours after the Kerch bridge was hit by a huge blast. The targets included the popular Shevchenko Park in central Kyiv, on a school-day morning usually a centre for families and buskers but the area was obliterated by a blast.
It was unknown how many people were in the park at the time of the attack on the capital, which was last hit by a Russian strike on June 26. Ukraine’s ministry of the interior reported that at least eight people died and 24 had been injured in that explosion alone.
Mr Putin told the Russian people during a security briefing several hours after Monday’s missile attacks that they had been conducted in retaliation for the Kerch bridge blast.
In the address, Mr Putin said any further “terrorist” attacks on Russia would be dealt with “in a very harsh manner, no one should be in any doubt about this”.
He said the attack on the Kerch bridge was aimed at destroying Russian infrastructure and the masterminds were the Ukraine special service.
“This morning on the proposal of the minister of defence and the general staff, we have conducted massive high precision strikes from the sea and from land aimed at Ukraine military and communication infrastructure,’’ Mr Putin said.
He said there had been acts of nuclear terrorism where Ukrainian artillery and rocket strikes had been made against the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Russian-controlled territory, as well as three attempted attacks against an unnamed nuclear plant in Russia and attacks on gas pipelines.
Former president Dmitry Medvedev said “The first episode has been played. There will be others,” adding the goal should be “the complete dismantling of Ukraine’s political regime”.
One of the missiles struck next to the 27-storey skyscraper, 101 Tower, also known as the Samsung building, on the outskirts of Kyiv. Several countries, including Germany, had visa offices inside the building, which appeared to have sustained damage to the lower floors. Australia’s embassy, shared with the Canadians, is 15km away in central Kyiv.
Russia also tried to disable the heart of Ukraine’s decision-making, attacking a central Kyiv street where Mr Zelensky’s office and those of the Ukraine security agencies are located.
Terrified locals rushed to take shelter in underground metro stations. Images from Kyiv showed fires, extensive damage to various buildings, burning cars, and bodies in the street. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the multiple missile strikes showed “Putin is a terrorist who talks with missiles” and had become desperate because of battlefield defeats.
However, the Russian general appointed to take charge of the invasion in the hours after the Kerch bridge attack, Sergei Surovikin, said: “For enemies of Russia, the morning does not start with coffee.”
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko called for closure of Ukraine’s airspace and Western supplied air-strike defences. The G7 is due to meet on Tuesday, and Mr Zelensky has already spoken to Germany and France about enhancing their military support.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna condemned Russia’s “indiscriminate” airstrikes on Ukraine, saying intentionally targeting civilians was a war crime.
Mr Klitschko on Twitter said: “We need to close our sky and we need weapons for that. It’s horrifying in the capital of Ukraine where millions live and work, (people) are still losing their lives on a sunny October. The bodies are still on the road – it is a sign of Russia’s reckless war.”
The Russian campaign in Ukraine has been faltering and the attack on the bridge, opened by Mr Putin in 2018, is deeply symbolic. Three spans were partly destroyed and damage has hampered heavy goods movement between Russia and Crimea.
In a grainy video from the morning after Mr Putin’s 70th birthday, a truck can be seen rumbling through the darkness from Russia towards Crimea along the Kerch bridge. About 6am, as it crossed some of the deepest waters of the strait, it disappeared in a flash. Debris from the explosion appears to have torn through the containers of a freight train on the rails above, causing an inferno.
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