Kyiv posts Russian document refuting claim that Ukrainian drone hit bus carrying Belarusian children

The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has released an official Russian document that refutes the claim of Ukrainian involvement in a strike on a bus carrying Belarusian citizens in Russia's Bryansk Oblast.

Source: Security Service of Ukraine

Details: The SSU said it intercepted a report from the monitoring centre of Safe Region, a state agency in Bryansk Oblast, in the course of counter-intelligence measures. The report says there were no Ukrainian drones in the district's airspace at the time of the bus incident.

The intercepted report states that:

• the so-called "RS OSh YNTs" (Regional Segment of the Operational Headquarters of Russia's Unified National Centre) did not record any UAVs in the area of the incident;
• the presence of drones in the airspace was also not confirmed by the duty officer of the radar battalion in the Russian settlement of Suponevo;
• the duty officer of Russia's 32nd Division also did not confirm any drone flights at the specific time.

The SSU said it therefore has grounds to believe that the strike on the bus carrying Belarusian citizens in Bryansk Oblast was a special operation by Russian intelligence services.

Quote: "We note that the aggressor country has repeatedly accused Ukraine of crimes that were in fact committed by representatives of the Russian Federation. The Russian authorities use such incidents to conduct their own psychological operations and exert pressure on Ukraine internationally.

We stress once again that Ukraine and all the security and defence forces of our state strictly comply with the laws and customs of war and act solely against legitimate military targets."

Background:

• Yegor Kovalchuk, acting governor of Bryansk Oblast, claimed on 17 June that a Ukrainian drone had attacked a bus carrying a children's football team from Belarus. He said the team from Homiel (Gomel) was travelling to Russia's Gelendzhik for a holiday.
• The governor claimed that a Belarusian woman accompanying the team had been killed in the strike. Six other people were allegedly injured, including four children.
• Russia's Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case over what it says was a terrorist attack. The Kremlin has also described the incident as a terrorist attack. Belarus's Foreign Ministry said it regarded the strike as "an act of terrorism against civilians" and demanded "comprehensive explanations" from Kyiv.
• The Ukrainian side has officially denied the allegations of a "Ukrainian drone attack". The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine stated that Ukraine's defence forces did not deploy UAVs against facilities in Russia's Bryansk Oblast during the period in question. "Unable to achieve its stated objectives on the battlefield and suffering significant losses, the Russian Federation is increasingly resorting to information manipulation and fabricating accusations against Ukraine," the General Staff said in a statement.

• Following reports about the attack on the bus, Ukraine's Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets immediately contacted the Belarusian side and stressed that Ukraine had no involvement in the incident.

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