Ukraine says stray missile might have reached Belarus

December 29, BPN. It is possible that a stray Ukrainian missile fell onto Belarus, but if that was the case, it was a result of Russian missile strikes, Ukraine’s Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat has said.

“After all, the work of our air defense is so intense, including today, that these things are possible. We know examples in neighboring states: debris can fall,” Ihnat said, as seen on Ukrainian television (quotes rendered from Russian).

He said Ukraine will soon make an “objective analysis of the situation and consequences of another Russian attack, and report on the incident.”

Commenting on the Belarusian authorities’ version, Ihnat said that “we cannot believe the regimes of [Alaksandr] Łukašenka and [Vladimir] Putin.”

In the morning of December 29, media reported that an air defense missile was downed near the village of Harbacha, Ivanava district, Brest region.

A Telegram channel linked to authorities said that “between 10:00 and 11:00 a.m., a Ukrainian S-300 missile was spotted falling from Ukraine onto Belarus.”

Later, the Belarusian defense ministry said the missile was downed by Belarus’ air defense unit. “A probe tentatively established that the wreckage belonged to an S-300 anti-aircraft guided missile, fired from the territory of Ukraine,” it said.

The Belarusian foreign ministry said it summoned Ukrainian Ambassador Ihor Kyzym to “strongly protest the launch of an S-300 surface-to-air guided missile towards Belarus from Ukraine.”

The ministry demanded that Kyiv “immediately conduct a thorough investigation into the circumstances of the missile launch, punish those responsible and take comprehensive measures to avoid similar incidents in the future, which may lead to catastrophic consequences.”

Russia fired dozens of missiles at Ukraine on December 29.

The S-300 surface-to-air missile systems are in service both in Russia and Ukraine.

They are capable of engaging a variety of targets at ranges from just a few kilometers to 75-200 kilometers. Both sides use them due to their wide availability and high efficiency.

Analysts say that because of a shortage of high-precision weapons in Russia, its engineers repurpose S-300/S-400 missiles for strikes against ground targets.