Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the creation of a “special economic zone” in Russia’s Belgorod region, located on the border with Ukraine, Lenta reports with reference to a decree published on the Kremlin’s website.

The execution of the order is entrusted to the government of Russia, headed by Prime Minister Mykhailo Mishustin, and the regional authorities of Belgorod, which have until May 15 to fulfill the order of the head of the Kremlin, the document says.

Prime Minister Mishustin and Belgorod Region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov are directly named as responsible for the implementation of the order.

In January, Gladkov said the region was going through “tough times” after Ukrainian forces reportedly stepped up its bombing and drone attacks. Since the first months of the war, Russia has accused Ukraine of attacks on civilians in Belgorod, which Kyiv denies.

Russia accuses Ukraine of shelling Belgorod with rockets

On February 10, Belgorod authorities declared a state of emergency due to the “missile threat”, advising residents to hide in safe rooms and stay away from windows. However, the state of emergency was lifted on the same day.

The regional authorities issued a similar warning on January 5, expanding the possibility of evacuating the administrative capital of the region, the city of the same name.

Russia claims 14 people were killed and more than 160 injured in a Ukrainian missile strike on Belgorod in late December last year.

“President Volodymyr Putin was informed about the offensive of the Ukrainian army on the residential quarters of Belgorod,” Kremlin press secretary Dmytro Peskov said at the time.

The Ukrainian attack would come after Russia carried out a massive airstrike on Ukrainian cities the same day, killing dozens of civilians and injuring hundreds, according to authorities in Kyiv.

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