Border crossings in Zakarpattia temporarily halted for first time due to drone strike
Photo: border crossing point with Slovakia (suspilne.media)
On Wednesday, May 13, Slovakia closed its border with Ukraine due to warnings of new Russian strikes, according to a statement from the country’s Financial Administration and a comment by State Border Guard Service spokesperson Andrii Demchenko.
Slovakia temporarily closed all border crossing points on its border with Ukraine, citing the threat of a large-scale strike on Uzhhorod and the Zakarpattia region.
"Due to security reasons, all border crossing points on the border with Ukraine are closed today from approximately 3:00 PM until further notice. We will inform you about further developments," the statement said.
Demchenko said that, due to an air alert within the Zakarpattia region and the detection of hostile aerial targets, control services in the region took measures to ensure people’s safety. This lasted for about an hour, and border crossings are now operating normally.
The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (DPSU) spokesperson noted that the measures were taken first on the Ukrainian side, after which Slovakia made a similar decision. He stressed that such a security measure within Zakarpattia was taken for the first time.
Attack on Zakarpattia
Local authorities stressed that today’s attack was one of the largest in the region since the beginning of the full-scale war. There are reports of strikes on an industrial facility and a railway station transformer.
Zakarpattia Regional Governor Myroslav Biletskyi urged residents to stay in safe places due to the risk of repeated strikes.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the May 13 attack on Ukraine was not accidental. According to him, the Russian leader is trying to overshadow US President Donald Trump’s visit to China.
Defense Ministry advisor Serhii "Flash" said the attack on Ukraine would continue until midday tomorrow. He warned that the enemy would launch missile strikes at night, followed by another wave of kamikaze drones.
