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Belarusian border guards down drone violating airspace from Ukrainian territory

Chairman of the Belarusian State Border Guard Committee Anatoly Lappo said on Wednesday that to date the Ukrainian side had blown up "actually all the bridges in the Gomel and Mozyr areas," and the Ukrainian military was presently starting to blow up all the bridges in the Volyn direction"

MINSK, November 16. /TASS/. Belarusian border guards have shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle intruding into the republic’s airspace from Ukrainian territory, the press office of the Belarusian State Border Guard Committee reported on Wednesday.

"Pinsk border guards spotted a quadcopter 100 meters from the Belarussian-Ukrainian border heading for the territory of the Republic of Belarus from the Ukrainian side. The incident occurred today, November 16, in the Kobryn district," the statement reads.

"The drone was shot down by an on-duty border guard squad from a Kalashnikov automatic rifle. The quadcopter was outfitted with a video camera and was used for conducting reconnaissance and surveying technical border protection facilities on the territory of Belarus," the press office said.

On November 2, Belarusian border guards intercepted and forcibly grounded a Ukrainian quadcopter in the Gomel district 1 km from the Belarus-Ukraine border that was being used to practice dropping explosives, the republic’s Border Guard Committee said.

Chairman of the Belarusian State Border Guard Committee Anatoly Lappo said on Wednesday that to date the Ukrainian side had blown up "actually all the bridges in the Gomel and Mozyr areas," and the Ukrainian military was presently starting to blow up all the bridges in the Volyn direction."

In response, Belarus has reinforced its border guard units, stepped up the use of technical means of protection and engaged maneuverable territorial border guard squads.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko earlier said that the republic possessed the necessary weapons to protect the border with Ukraine from drones and other aerial targets. He said that Ukraine had moved a 15,000-strong battlegroup to the border with Belarus.

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