Russian missile lands in pro-Nato Moldova across border from Ukraine as Putin edges closer to brink of World War Three
A RUSSIAN missile has landed in pro-Nato Moldova - as Putin's forces further risk letting the Ukraine invasion spiral into World War Three.
The missile landed in the village of Naslavcea this morning after it was shot down by air defences in neighbouring Ukraine, Moldova's Interior Ministry said.
No injuries were reported - but the windows of several homes were blown out when the missile smashed into the northern end of the village, the ministry said.
"So far there are no reported victims, but the windows of several houses in Naslavcea were destroyed," it said.
Naslavcea lies on the border with Ukraine in Moldova's north.
Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu said the Russian strike had targeted a Ukrainian dam on the Nistru river that runs through Ukraine and Moldova.
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"Attacks on water infrastructure and ensuing stress on the river could put the entire region in danger of floods," he said.
He slammed Russian aggression against Ukraine "in the strongest possible terms".
The falling of debris on Moldova is the latest spill-over from the war in Ukraine into the country - which is a former part of the Soviet Union with a pro-Western government.
Earlier this month, Moldova said Russian cruise missiles targeting Ukraine had crossed into its airspace - and summoned Moscow's envoy to demand an explanation.
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Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees have also flooded into Moldova since Putin invaded Ukraine in February.
Along with Ukraine, the country was given granted candidate status by the EU in a show of support in the face of Russia's offensive.
Moldova is one of the few European countries that is not a member of Nato as neutrality is enshrined in the country's constitution - preventing it from applying for membership.
But Moldova has cooperated with Nato on a range of issues since 1992 and works closely with the alliance.
Last month, Ukraine officially applied to become part of Nato after mad Putin vowed to use "any means" to defend the four Ukrainian regions illegally annexed to Russia.
Russia has long feared Ukraine joining the alliance since it became closer with the West and Putin has repeatedly issued threats to scare the nation into staying out of it.
It comes as Russia fired dozens of missiles at Ukraine on Monday, pounding energy facilities, causing blackouts and cutting off water supplies in some parts of the country, Ukrainian officials said.
A Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman said: "Morning starts with air defence sirens all across Ukraine. Russian missiles hit energy infrastructure in Kyiv and other cities, causing electricity and water outages.
"Russia is not interested in peace talks, nor in global food security. Putin’s only goal is death and destruction."
Ukraine's prime minister Denys Shmyhal said missiles and drones hit ten regions.
"Hundreds of settlements in seven regions of Ukraine were cut off," he said.
Water supplies were cut for 80 per cent of Kyiv residents as several blasts shook the capital Kyiv - days after Russia blamed Ukraine for drone attacks on its Crimea fleet in the Black Sea.
"Currently, due to the emergency situation in Kyiv, 80 per cent of consumers remain without water supply," the city's mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
"Engineers are also working to restore power to 350,000 homes in Kyiv that were left without electricity."
Similar attacks targeted infrastructure across Ukraine - including Lviv in the west, Zaporizhzhia in the south and Kharkiv in the northeast.
Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said the city had been struck by two missiles that targeted "a critical infrastructure facility".
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Russia's defence ministry said: "The Russian armed forces continued strikes with high-precision long-range air and sea-based weapons against the military command and energy systems of Ukraine.
"The strike targets were achieved. All assigned objects have been hit."