Belarus Defence Minister says it downed Ukrainian S-300 air defence missile in border region

Belarus protested to Ukraine’s ambassador on Thursday after saying it had downed a Ukrainian S-300 air defence missile in a field, during one of Russia’s heaviest aerial onslaughts against Ukraine since the start of the war.

He compared the incident to one in November, when an S-300 believed to have strayed after being fired by Ukrainian air defences landed on the territory of NATO-member Poland, triggering fears of an escalation that were rapidly defused.

Nevertheless, the Ukrainian ambassador was summoned to the foreign ministry in Minsk to receive a formal protest.

The S-300 is a Soviet-era air defence system used by both Russia and Ukraine.

Belarus said the missile had come down near the village of Harbacha in the Brest region, some 15 kms (9 miles) from the border with Ukraine, at around 10 a.m. (0700 GMT).

The incident occurred as Russia was launching its latest wave of missile attacks on cities across Ukraine.

BelTA published photos and video of what it said were parts of an S-300 missile lying in an empty field.

Belarus allowed Moscow to use its territory in February as a launchpad for the invasion of Ukraine, and there has been a growing flurry of Russian and Belarusian military activity in Belarus in recent months.

Minsk has, however, insisted that it is not participating in the war, and will not participate unless its own security is threatened by Ukraine or Ukraine’s Western allies.

While Kyiv has used the S-300 system to intercept incoming Russian missiles, Russia has appeared to use repurposed S-300 missiles to attack ground targets.