Russians’ panic, explosions and evacuation: what is happening in Belgorod

The Freedom of Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps has announced the beginning of the “liberation” of Russia from the current government. On May 22, the units crossed the Russian Federation border and entered the Belgorod region’s territory. In particular, in the settlements of Kozinka and Gora-Podol.

“Stay at home, do not resist, and do not be afraid; we are not your enemies. Unlike Putin’s zombies, we do not harm civilians and do not use them for our own purposes,” Ukrainska Pravda cited the Legion. 

Later, the Legion and the Volunteer Corps reported the offensive operation on Graivoron. A Russian military unit – facility “S” – is the central base for storing nuclear weapons located there. The Russians have begun urgently evacuating ammunition from the storage, Suspilne reported.

Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of the Belgorod region, reported on the shelling of the Graivoron city district, three people were injured. Kozinka was also attacked using mortars. Apart from that, drones attacked the buildings of the FSB and the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Belgorod on the night of May 22-23.

The local authorities confirm that after air raid sirens and explosions, most of the Graivoron district residents fled the settlements.

 “The Russian information space responded [to the events in Belgorod region] with a similar degree of panic, factionalism, and incoherency as it tends to display when it experiences significant informational shocks,” Institute for the Study of War analysts stated.

Governor Gladkov stated that the territory of Russia was attacked by a “sabotage and reconnaissance group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine”. Later, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov reported on “work to squeeze out the [Ukrainian] sabotage group.” A “regime of counter-terrorist operation” was introduced in the Belgorod region.

Ukraine has no direct relation to the events in the Russian border region, the President’s Office assured. At the same time, the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine adds that only Russian citizens participate in the operation to create a “security zone” to protect Ukrainian civilians. The Legion and the volunteer corps declared that they seek the “liberation” of the entire country and create a “demilitarized zone” in the Belgorod region.

The Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom of Russia Legion, which were created last year, are military units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. These are former fighters of Russia who surrendered or immediately decided to fight on the side of Ukraine.