Ukraine calls Russian claims of drone attack on Minsk-Anapa bus a provocation

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has described information about an alleged drone attack on a Minsk-Anapa passenger bus as false and fabricated, stating that Russia is attempting to divert international attention from the strike on Kyiv in which at least 20 people were killed.

Source: General Staff spokesman Major Andrii Kovalov in a comment to UP; Russian media

Quote from General Staff spokesman: "The latest information attack by the Russian Federation regarding an alleged strike by a Ukrainian UAV on a Minsk-Anapa passenger bus in the area of the Chervonyi Kamin customs crossing in Bryansk Oblast is a deliberate and cynical provocation by the Russian Federation, aimed exclusively at covering up its criminal terrorist strike on the Ukrainian capital today."

Details: Kovalov says Russia's military-political leadership is resorting to staged incidents and strikes on its own citizens in attempts to divert world attention from yet another act of terrorism in Kyiv.

Quote: "The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine officially states that Ukraine's defence forces conducted no strikes whatsoever on the said civilian transport, and all accusations from the aggressor state are absolutely false and fabricated."

More details: The General Staff spokesman added that the Armed Forces of Ukraine strike exclusively legitimate military targets and do not conduct hostilities against the civilian population.

Kovalov called on international partners and the entire global community to condemn Russia's latest groundless accusations and "give a proper legal and political assessment of the deliberate, brutal terrorist killing of Ukrainian citizens carried out by the Russian aggressor during the large-scale attack on Ukraine and Kyiv".

Background:

• On the afternoon of 2 July, Belarusian television reported that a drone attacked a bus carrying 19 passengers travelling on the Minsk-Homel-Anapa route in Bryansk Oblast.
• The Belarusian Health Ministry reported three casualties – two drivers and a passenger. They will receive treatment at Homel Regional Clinical Hospital.
• Belarus's state secretary of the Security Council said "the drone exploded in front of the bus".
• Russia's Investigative Committee opened a case into an alleged "terrorist act".

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