Destroyed cars after a raid in Russia's Belgorod region on December 30 (Photo: Reuters).
"With these weapons, they attacked right in the city center, where people were having fun on New Year's Eve. This was a targeted attack on civilians," President Putin said on January 1 during a visit to a military hospital in Moscow, where he met with Russian servicemen wounded in the military campaign in Ukraine.
President Putin said Ukraine's offensive efforts were aimed at destabilizing Russia and threatening its people.
The Russian leader's statement came after a serviceman asked him about Ukraine's December 30, 2023 attack on the Belgorod region and Moscow's response. President Putin described the attack as carried out using indiscriminate weapons.
President Putin stressed that Russia will not retaliate against Kiev's actions despite the possibility of doing so.
"Of course we can act, we have the ability to bomb Kiev and any other Ukrainian city," Putin added.
Instead, Mr Putin said Russia would continue to target Ukrainian military hardware and infrastructure. The Russian leader warned that the number of attacks would inevitably increase. He stressed that attacks by the Ukrainian government would not go unnoticed.
"Of course, no crime, and this is certainly a crime against civilians, will go unpunished. There will definitely be punishment," Mr. Putin warned.
"We are striking with high-precision weapons at command centers, at concentrations of military personnel and mercenaries, and at other facilities, primarily military facilities. And these strikes are quite painful. That is what we will continue to do," the Kremlin chief declared.
Location of Belgorod region on the Russian border (Photo: NYT).
The city of Belgorod, like other areas in southwestern Russia, has come under constant artillery, rocket and drone attacks by Ukrainian forces amid escalating conflict.
On December 30, Belgorod suffered its deadliest attack to date, when the area came under heavy fire from multiple rocket launcher systems.
The attack damaged several public places and residential buildings, killing at least 24 civilians and injuring more than 100.
On December 31, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that it had retaliated against Ukraine by attacking a series of military facilities and Kiev's decision-making center in Kharkov.
The attack on Belgorod came a day after Russia launched its largest-ever airstrike on Ukrainian cities using 158 missiles and drones. The airstrikes killed at least 39 people in Ukraine.
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