Russia's elite seems unsettled after the drone attacks on Moscow. The Kremlin is therefore building new air-raid shelters.
Moscow - Even if President Vladimir Putin calls the drone attacks on Moscow only a provocation, the Kremlin seems to be drawing consequences from the attacks. Just a few days after the events and in the midst of the Ukraine war, Russia's government has signed a contract for the construction of a bomb shelter on the site of an elite Moscow hospital. This is reported by the Moscow Times, citing the contract, which is apparently available to the news portal.
The bunker under the hospital in Moscow is supposed to accommodate 800 people. Construction work has already begun and is expected to be completed this year. The construction is expected to cost Russia around 35 million rubles (about 400,000 euros). According to the Moscow Times, the bunker is mainly reserved for "VIP patients" and hospital staff.
Bunker construction in Moscow after drone strikes
The hospital, under which the bomb shelter is to be built, is located about 17 kilometers from the Kremlin. The facility is said to be designed to withstand attacks on Russia with both conventional and nuclear weapons. There will be several emergency exits and ancillary rooms, as well as modern ventilation and heating systems. Cleaning filters are designed to protect people in the bunker from the ingress of "gaseous weapons of mass destruction," as the Moscow Times quotes from the treaty.
Vladimir Putin at a video conference with the Russian Security Council in the Kremlin. © GAVRIIL GRIGOROV/AFP
The construction of the bunker in Moscow begins immediately after drone attacks on the capital of Russia. On Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry reported the shooting down of eight drones that had entered the airspace over Moscow. Independent media, on the other hand, report up to 32 drones. There were no casualties in the attacks. However, several buildings in the capital were damaged. A drone is said to have crashed just a few kilometers from Putin's Novo-Ogaryovo residence.
Fierce fighting continues in Belgorod
Russia blames Ukraine for the attacks on Moscow. But Kiev denies any involvement. In addition to Moscow, the Russian border regions are also increasingly affected by the Ukraine war. In Belgorod, Russian special forces and partisans fought fierce battles. Several people are said to have died. Here, too, Ukraine continues to deny involvement.