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Ukrainian Defense Ministry steps up security at munition depots

Deterioration of the situation in the country has compelled the Armed Forces of Ukraine to step up the guarding of depots with munitions and weaponry
Ukrainian protesters ITAR-TASS/ Maxim Nikitin
Ukrainian protesters
© ITAR-TASS/ Maxim Nikitin

KIEV, February 12. /ITAR-TASS/. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry has tightened security measures at the depots with munitions and weaponry, the press service of the ministry said Wednesday quoting an instruction by Acting Defense Minister Pavel Lebedev.

“Deterioration of the situation in the country has compelled the Armed Forces to step up the guarding of depots with munitions and weaponry,” he said.

The tightening of security aims to prevent a possible seizure and use of weaponry and munitions against peaceful civilians.

Earlier, the antiterrorist center of the Ukrainian Security Service said its antiterrorist units had been put on high alert in connection with a growing number of reports on the showings of terrorist character, including the phone calls on planting of explosives devices in crowded public places.

The Security Service also mentioned the threats of explosions at vulnerable facilities, like nuclear power plants, hydropower plants, international airports, railway and bus stations, and major pipelines.

Tuesday, Energy and Coalmining Minister Eduard Stavitsky said issued a resolution on tightening security and safety precautions at the country’s ramified system of trunk gas pipelines. The ministry’s press service said the resolution had been issued in order to enact contingency response measures enabling proper supplies of natural gas to the consumers and the maintenance of scheduled transits of natural gas via the territory of Ukraine to third countries.

In part, Stavitsky told the units responsible for security to maintain a round-the-clock coordination between the national oil and gas corporation Naftogaz Ukrainy and the appropriate territorial branches of the State Service for Emergency Situations, the Interior Ministry, and contact groups of the Antiterrorist Centers reporting to the regional branches of the Security Service.

“Reports by the Security Service of Ukraine are suggestive of a possibility of unlawful actions against the major gas pipelines on the territory of this country and unauthorized interference with their functioning may create a threat of emergency situations and accidents at sensitive technological installations like underground storage facilities, compressor and gas-distribution plants,” the Energy and Coalmining Ministry says.

Besides, a risk of outage of Russian natural gas deliveries to the countries of Europe and supplies of gas to Ukrainian towns and industrial facilities arises and this in turn may bring about technological disasters, it said.