Kanyshai Butun
22 May 2026•Update: 22 May 2026
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday condemned the Ukrainian attack on the Starobilsk College of Luhansk Pedagogical University in the Russia-controlled Luhansk region that killed six people and injured 39 others.
Speaking at a meeting with graduates of the “Time of Heroes” program in the Kremlin, Putin ordered the Russian Defense Ministry to submit proposals for a response to the Ukrainian attack on the college.
He stressed that the attack on the college was deliberate, saying Ukrainian forces launched “three waves” of strikes at the same location and rejecting claims that the strike could have been the result of air defense or electronic warfare.
"I want to emphasize that this is important. There are no military facilities, intelligence agencies, or related services near the dormitory. Therefore, there is no basis for saying that the shells struck the building under the influence of our air defense or electronic warfare systems," he stressed.
However, the Ukrainian General Staff on Telegram denied Russia’s claims regarding the attack on the college.
"Russian media is actively spreading manipulative information about the alleged damage by the Armed Forces of Ukraine to civilian infrastructure facilities in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine,” it said in the statement.
Kyiv stressed that its forces strike military infrastructure and facilities used for military purposes, “strictly adhering to the norms of international humanitarian law, laws and customs of war.”
Ukrainian authorities said that during overnight strikes, Kyiv struck Russia’s oil refinery, ammunition depots, air defense systems, command posts, and Russian manpower, including one of the headquarters of Rubicon in the area of the city of Starobilsk, which it described as a Russian special military unit “whose representatives regularly strike civilians and civilian facilities in Ukraine.”
Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that Moscow opened a criminal case on “terrorism” charges following the attack, adding that “all those responsible will be identified and face inevitable severe punishment.”
The ministry claimed the strike was carried out using long-range weapons supplied to Ukraine by NATO countries, including drones, and alleged that foreign specialists assisted with targeting operations.
Moscow has also requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council following the attack, Yevgeny Uspensky, spokesperson for Russia’s permanent mission to the UN, told state news agency Tass.
