Russia: "Border fortifications completely destroyed by shells from Ukraine"... Ukraine: "Baseless" (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] On the 21st (local time), the Russian side announced that shells fired from Ukraine destroyed a Russian border guard facility, but there were no casualties. The Ukrainian side immediately denied this, calling it 'fake news.'

The Public Relations Office of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) stated that "at around 9:50 a.m., an unidentified shell fired from the Ukrainian side completely destroyed our border guard duty facility located 150 meters from the border."

The office added, "No one was injured, and explosive experts are inspecting the site." It has not yet been confirmed who fired the shell.

The Ukrainian military promptly refuted Russia's claim. A Ukrainian military spokesperson said, "We cannot stop the creation of fake news, but we always emphasize that we do not fire guns anywhere, including civilian facilities or certain territories within the Rostov region."

Rostov Oblast in southwestern Russia borders the Donbas region of Ukraine.

In the Donbas region, where pro-Russian separatist rebels control a significant portion, clashes between government forces and rebels have intensified since the 17th. Both sides accuse each other of deploying heavy weapons banned under the 2015 Minsk agreements, continuing the conflict.

The separatist government established by rebel forces in the Donbas region ordered residents to evacuate to Rostov on the 18th, citing the risk of government attacks.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.