The demilitarised zone in Ukraine should be at such a distance that would ensure the safety of peaceful Russian cities from shelling, presidential candidate and incumbent head of state Vladimir Putin said on 31 January.
Answering the question where the demilitarised line would be located, after which residents of the border regions would be able to feel calm because of shelling by the Ukrainian regions, he said:
This line should be at such a distance from our territory that would ensure security, having in mind long-range guns of foreign manufacture, which the Ukrainian authorities use to shell peaceful cities.
On the eve of the new year, on 30 December, shelling in the centre of the Russian border town of Belgorod killed 21 people, including three children, and wounded 110, local authorities said.
One of the strikes hit a skating rink in the heart of the city, located 40 kilometres north of the Ukrainian border and 670 kilometres south of Moscow.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said it had identified the munitions used in the strike as Czech-made Vampire and Alder missiles with cluster warheads.
In February 2023, President Putin said that Russian forces would push the “security zone” further away from the country’s borders if Western long-range weapons systems were supplied to Ukraine.
