The third deputy governor of the Belgorod region has joined a volunteer unit.

The Acting Deputy Governor of the Belgorod Region, Andrey Antonenko, has joined the volunteer squad "Bars-Belgorod." The regional head, Vyacheslav Gladkov, expressed his delight about this development on his VKontakte page, stating, "It couldn't have been any other way; he is doing a great job." Earlier in October, Deputy Governors Rustem Zainullin and Alexander Lorentz also joined the ranks of volunteers.

https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/73103232024-11-18 08:26:12

Mr. Antonenko has been combining the role of Deputy Governor with that of Minister of Agriculture for the region since September of this year. “I believe it is the duty of a real man. I also want to leave a part of myself and participate in the defense of our beloved Belgorod region,”— explained the official regarding his enlistment in the ranks of volunteers. He noted that his decision received full support. “I believe this will be beneficial for my future work, especially in the border area,”— added Andrey Antonenko.

Volunteer units to assist military personnel have been established in the border regions of Russia as part of the counter-terrorist operation regime. Since the beginning of autumn, local officials have been regularly joining these units. The Governor of Belgorod region has repeatedly stated that this should not lead to staffing issues. On November 14, Mr. Gladkov announced that the heads of the Gubkin district and the Krasnogvardeysky district, Mikhail Lobaznov and Galina Rudenko, who joined “Bars-Belgorod” a month ago, are returning to their permanent civilian positions.

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Sergiy Tolmachev, Voronezh