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KYIV, Ukraine — The covert operation was described as one for the “history books” by Ukraine’s president. In the span of some hours on Sunday, almost a 3rd of Moscow’s strategic bomber fleet was destroyed or broken with cheaply made drones sneaked into Russian territory, in keeping with Ukrainian officers.
The endeavor by Ukraine’s Security Service, codenamed “Spiderweb,” concerned greater than 18 months of painstaking planning and nice danger. It was personally overseen by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
It got here to fruition at a time within the 3-year-old battle when peace talks have did not ship the unconditional ceasefire long-sought by Kyiv, and as Moscow continues to launch record-breaking numbers of drone and missile barrages.
The assault on Sunday encapsulates Ukraine’s wartime technique: Outnumbered, outgunned and depending on Western companions, Ukrainian navy planners have sought modern and cost-effective means to precise Russian losses, usually leaning on the ingredient of shock.
Here’s what we all know concerning the Ukrainian assault thus far:
Zelenskyy mentioned 117 drones have been used within the operation by which 4 navy airfields have been attacked ensuing within the extreme injury or destruction of 34% of Russia’s fleet of air missile carriers.
The complicated operation was directed from an workplace that was subsequent door to an workplace of the Russian safety service, the FSB, Zelenskyy mentioned, with out elaborating on the place in Russia it was. Executing it concerned smuggling in first-person view, or FPV, drones to Russia, the place they have been positioned in wood containers, which have been ultimately taken by truck near the airfields.
From there, the drones flew to strike Russia’s strategic bombers. Social media footage shared by Russian media on the day of the assault confirmed drones rising from contained in the containers. By the tip, over 40 Russian warplanes have been severely broken or destroyed with prices estimated to be round $7 billion, in keeping with Ukraine’s safety service.
Among essentially the most placing targets was Belaya air base within the Siberian area of Irkutsk — over 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) away from Ukraine.
Russia’s Defense Ministry in a press release confirmed the assaults, saying they broken plane and sparked fires on air bases within the Irkutsk area, in addition to the Murmansk area within the north. It mentioned strikes have been additionally repelled within the Amur area in Russia’s Far East and within the western areas of Ivanovo and Ryazan, the ministry mentioned.
There was no method to independently confirm the claims from both facet.
Strategic plane, together with the A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22M, have been destroyed within the assault, in keeping with the SBU.
Moscow has beforehand used Tu-95 and Tu-22M long-range bombers to launch missiles at Ukraine, whereas A-50s are used to coordinate targets and detect air defenses and guided missiles. Ukraine has lengthy hoped to degrade Russia’s potential to deploy bombers that launch lethal missile barrages towards Ukrainian cities, towards which Kyiv has restricted means to reply.
The lack of the planes may cut back Russia’s potential to ship devastating missile barrages towards Ukraine.
The assault comes proper as Moscow has unleashed a record-breaking variety of drones and missiles towards Ukraine to degrade home weapons manufacturing capabilities, shatter morale and eat Kyiv’s restricted portions of air protection missiles. Often these assaults have additionally struck civilians.
The assault additionally offers Ukraine a morale increase at a time when peace talks have sputtered and will undermine Russian confidence that it may well win the battle with ease.
It was launched a day earlier than a spherical of direct peace talks came about in Istanbul on Monday. It additionally occurred on the identical day as Russia launched a document variety of 472 drones towards Ukraine in yet one more barrage.
“The enemy thought it could bomb Ukraine and kill Ukrainians with impunity and without end. But that is not the case. We will respond to Russian terror and destroy the enemy everywhere — at sea, in the air, and on land,” mentioned the top of the SBU, Vasyl Maliuk, on Monday.
“And if necessary, we’ll get them from underground too,” he added.
Despite struggling setbacks and shortcomings on the battlefield, all through the battle Kyiv has sought to deal with Russia’s rear to cripple and neutralize fight capabilities.
Sunday’s operation is probably essentially the most brazen in a collection mounted by Ukraine.
In April 2022, Ukraine sank the Moskva, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, after placing it with two Ukrainian Neptune anti-ship missiles. The sinking marked a significant Ukrainian victory within the battle.
In October 2022, a Ukrainian assault broken the Kerch Bridge, which hyperlinks Russia to Moscow-annexed Crimea. The bridge, which holds necessary strategic and symbolic worth, was hit once more in July 2023.
A yr later, in August 2024, Ukrainian forces launched a daring navy incursion into Russia’s Kursk area, the primary time Russian territory was occupied by an invader since World War II. It dealt a humiliating blow to the Kremlin. Russia claimed in April 2025 that it had absolutely reclaimed the border territory, although Ukraine insists it nonetheless has troops current there.
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