Russia-Ukraine war: Top official Rogozin wounded in Ukrainian shelling

On July 29, 2020, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin was injured during a shelling of a strategic installation in the Ukrainian region of Donbas. The incident occurred at a time of growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine in the territory of Donbas, where a brutal and bloody conflict has been ongoing for the past six years.

Rogozin, a prominent figure in Russian politics, had been visiting the area with a delegation of Russian diplomats when the shelling began. Reporters present on the scene stated that the delegation had been visiting a strategic objective in order to assess the situation in the area. According to the statement issued later by the Russian Foreign Ministry, the delegation had been targeting “illegal armed formations”.

Eyewitnesses reported that the attack was orchestrated by Ukrainian forces and that the convoy was attacked while driving near the village of Olenovka, close to the border with the Russian region of Rostov. It is unclear at this time what kind of weapons were used by the Ukrainians in the attack and how many casualties have been sustained by the convoy.

Although Rogozin’s injuries were not life-threatening, the incident serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of the current ceasefire between the two countries. Furthermore, it has intensified already heated diplomatic relations between Russia and Ukraine. The shelling comes in the wake of similar incidents in the region in recent months, including Ukraine’s arrest of a number of Russians accused of supporting separatist forces in the region.

In response to the attack, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev strongly condemned Ukraine, calling the incident a provocation and demanding that Ukraine immediately cease all provocative actions in the region. He also urged the international community to intervene and to pressure both sides to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

It is clear that tensions in the region are intensifying and that there is an urgent need for all parties involved to return to the negotiating table and to find a peaceful solution to the conflict before the situation escalates further. It is also evident that the international community must exert pressure on both sides to ensure that there is an effective resolution to the conflict, and to avoid yet another devastating war in Europe.