Russia’s network of bomb shelters and bunkers reportedly being repaired
A Cold War-era bunker in Moscow that was once a heavily restricted military site.
Laski Diffusion | Hulton Archive | Getty Images
Bomb shelters across Russia are being repaired following an order from the Kremlin to fix Soviet-era infrastructure, according to The Moscow Times.
The English-language online paper said a large part of thousands of bunkers, reinforced cellars and other safe hideouts had been out of use for decades but that the war in Ukraine had prompted the authorities to spend millions of rubles to make them fit for use again.
“A decision to inspect the network of bomb shelters was made by the government in the spring,” one Russian official told the news outlet, citing knowledge of government meetings on the matter.
“The command for a large-scale inspection and to put things right was given by the Emergency Situations Ministry, the Defense Ministry and [other] civilian ministries,” the unnamed official said.
The paper noted that the overhaul of the country’s bomb shelter network comes against the backdrop of Kremlin nuclear saber-rattling and “a growing militarization of daily life in Russia.”
— Holly Ellyatt
Russia moves troops into eastern Ukraine ahead of offensive, says governor
Soldiers on a tank in Bakhmut, Ukraine, on Feb. 6, 2023.
Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
Russia is moving troops into eastern Ukraine ahead of its anticipated offensive, a Ukrainian governor warned Monday.
“We are seeing more and more (Russian) reserves being deployed in our direction, we are seeing more equipment being brought in,” Serhiy Haidai, Ukraine’s governor of the mainly Russian-occupied Luhansk province, said Monday, according to Reuters.
“They bring ammunition that is used differently than before – it is not round-the-clock shelling anymore. They are slowly starting to save, getting ready for a full-scale offensive,” Haidai told Ukrainian television.
“It will most likely take them…
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