Photos from the day of Russia’s biggest attack on Ukraine, taken from Zelensky’s Instagram page
Ukraine’s second attack on the Crimean Bridge was not that successful, but what news outlets and experts have been talking about since it happened is the surprising drone attack that Kiev launched deep into Russian territory and wiped out more than 40 bombers.
The so-called “Operation SpiderWeb” has been planning for over a year, with 117 drones each with their own pilots being carried out on Sunday. It destroyed a third of Russia’s strategic bomber fleet, causing damages well over 6 billion euros.
Ukrainian President Voldy Mie Zelensky praised his “Operation Spider-Web” and said he made “absolutely great results” “achieved by Ukraine alone.”
“The most interesting thing – and we can already say this publicly – that the “office” of our operations on Russian territory is right next to the Russian FSB (Federal Security Services) in one of their regions,” he said. In the post With a telegram.
117 drones, each controlled by one person
“In total, 117 drones were used for the operation, and a corresponding number of drone operators were involved,” he explained. “34% of strategic cruise missile carriers stationed at air force bases have been attacked.”
Zelensky said those who supported the operation from within Russia have been brought back to Ukraine’s safety. “Glory to Ukraine!” he welcomed.
On Instagram post On Tuesday, Zelensky wrote, “Russia must really feel that continuing the war will have devastating consequences for them.” He added that only attacks and bombings will see the pressure necessary for Russian President Vladimir Putin to feel the need for peace.
Reuters It has been reported According to three open source analysts, satellite images of Russian air bases taken late this Tuesday shortly after the Ukrainian drone attack confirm that several strategic bombers had been destroyed and severely damaged. British institutions described the Ukrainian attack as the most complicated and effective since the beginning of the war three years ago.
“Retaliation is inevitable”
The Russian Ministry of Defense said Ukraine has launched drone strikes targeting military airfields in the Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Riazan and the sheep region.
Dmitry Medvedev, a Russian security official who recently threatened WWII, said Moscow would be revenge against attacks on the bombers. “Retaliation is inevitable.”
The bad news for Kiev is that military experts who spoke with Reuters are not enough to stop Russia from launching more missile attacks in Ukraine using strategic bombers.
A research group at the War Institute (ISW) said, “This operation will force Russian authorities to redistribut the Russian air defense system to cover a wider range of territory and to deploy mobile air defense groups that can respond more quickly to similar Ukrainian drone strikes in the future.”
The Symbol of Russia that is hated
Unfortunately for Ukraine, however, the attack on the hated Russian symbol of the failure of the Kerch Bridge, which connects Crimea with the Russian mainland, failed.
The BBC reported that the bridge had been closed for hours but later reopened, reopening traffic across the infrastructure, indicating no damage has occurred.
In October 2022, a fire broke out on a bridge when a truck loaded with bombs exploded. Russian officials reported that at least three people have died and that the central part of the bridge has collapsed into the sea. In July 2023, Putin vowed to respond when the two died after Ukraine crossed the bridge by drone. And early this morning, the bridge was the target of the third Ukraine attack, where an underwater explosion targeted it.
Yet another “terrorist act”
And today, the Russian state commission on investigations accused Ukraine of yet another act of what Ukraine called “terrorism” by blowing up two Russian railway bridges over the weekend. Seven people were killed and 113 people were injured, including children, when two trains crashed as a result of the attack.
In the meantime, officials from both countries have met in something useless with peace negotiations, as they have not made any progress. This was recognized by several US senators, including Republican Lindsay Graham and Democrat Richard Blumenthal. Who pointed it out It was clear that Putin had no intention of ending the war any time soon.
