Under threat of Russian invasion, Ukraine forces train for urban warfare in Chernobyl ghost town
- Ukrainian soldiers drill urban warfare scenario in town of Pripyat, which has been deserted since the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster
- The country is bracing for a possible military offensive after Russia massed more than 100,000 troops near borders in recent weeks
Machine gun fire echoed through the abandoned buildings of Pripyat in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, as Ukrainian National Guard troops on Friday staged urban combat exercises.
The live-fire training - carried out in one of the most radioactive places on Earth - came as warnings swirl over a potential Russian invasion.
Moscow has massed over 100,000 troops along Ukraine’s border - including deploying personnel to Belarus, which lies just 10km (six miles) to the north for joint drills.
For Ukraine’s forces, the deserted streets and apartment blocks of Pripyat - empty since residents were evacuated following the nuclear reactor disaster in 1986 - made an ideal training ground.
Troops in winter camouflage practised clearing armed attackers from buildings, targeted mortar fire and took on snipers in urban conditions.
Emergency service workers staged evacuations - a speaker on a drone telling residents to clear out - and fought fires caused by fighting.