Russia Drops Missile on Own Territory Near Ukraine Border
Russia has inadvertently dropped an X-59 missile onto its own territory close to the Ukraine border. The incident, which occurred near the village of Krasnoye in the Belgorod region on April 19th, marks the latest self-bombing incident in the ongoing war. The missile was discovered in a field and subsequently destroyed by the military, with no reported damage or casualties.
Belgorod, situated near the Ukrainian border, has experienced multiple explosions throughout the conflict, with Russian authorities attributing them to accidental munitions drops. In the past two months alone, Russian forces are believed to have mistakenly dropped at least 21 aerial bombs on their own territory or occupied Ukrainian lands.
The Russian Defense Ministry has not yet commented on the latest incident. Astra, an independent Russian outlet, reported the incident on its Telegram channel on Monday, stating that the military had to destroy the missile on the spot and that there was no damage or victims. Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for additional comment but has not yet received a response.
The Kremlin has also not commented on the latest incident reported in Belgorod.
History of Self-Bombing Incidents
This is not the first time that Russia has accidentally dropped munitions on its own territory during the war in Ukraine. In March and April alone, Astra reported that Moscow forces have mistakenly dropped at least 21 aerial bombs from its aircraft on Russian soil or on occupied territories of Ukraine. The publication added that Russian authorities tend to cover up the incidents, saying that there was “an abnormal discharge of ammunition.” Moscow has also said there have been “technical malfunctions.”
“There are no exact answers [for] why this happens,” Astra said.
On January 27th, Russia accidentally dropped Soviet-designed FAB aerial bombs on Belgorod twice, Astra said. They didn’t detonate or cause any casualties, and were defused the next day. Days earlier, on January 21st, the outlet said that another FAB aerial bomb was dropped on Rostov-on-Don. And, on January 13th, Russia accidentally dropped two Kalibr missiles on Dagestan, located in the North Caucasus region in southern Russia, twice in a single day. The first Russian Kalibr missile fell in the region between the villages of Pavlovskaya and Atamanskaya in the morning, and the second came down in a field during the evening, causing no casualties or damage, Astra reported. The outlet cited sources in the region’s emergency services, analyst Ian Matveev, and analysts from the Conflict Intelligence Team.
On January 2nd, a Russian Iskander missile fell on the village of Petropavlovka in the Voronezh region, injuring four people.
