DONETSK, August 2 (RIA Novosti) – Independence supporters of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said on Saturday that the Ukrainian government troops are moving Tochka-U short-range ballistic missile systems to Donetsk.
“The Ukrainian Army is moving to Donetsk Tochka-U [NATO reporting name SS-21 Scarab] missile complexes. The enemy’s columns of BM-30 Smerch and BM-27 Uragan have been spotted,” the Donetsk militia said in its Twitter microblog.
The commander of the Donetsk People’s Republic militia Igor Strelkov said earlier this week that Tochka-U complexes have been delivered to Kramatorsk and Kiev is expected to attack disposal facilities in Donetsk and Luhansk that contain at least 150 tons of chlorine.
This could result in an environmental disaster, he said.
On Saturday, at least three people were killed in artillery shelling in the Petrovsky district of Donetsk. The shells hit a school and a local power station, a RIA Novosti correspondent said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that Moscow is concerned by reports that Ukraine’s government troops have used ballistic missiles against independence supporters in the country’s east.
CNN reported citing US officials earlier this week that Ukraine’s government troops used short-range ballistic missiles in the east. The weapons have a range of about 50 miles and pack warheads of up to 1,000 pounds.
