It’s published •update
The Ukrainian defence forces claim that Russia launched a “first-take” strike as it was preparing for a massive drone and missile attack on Ukrainian cities.
Public staff reported that Ukraine had attacked Russian airfields and military facilities on the eve of a massive attack in Moscow on Friday.
Kiev says it crashed into Engels Airfield in the Saratov region of Russia on the night of June 6th. This is the central location of Russian aircraft left behind by the Ukrainian Security Services (SBU) operations.
In addition, in the Saratov region, numerous hits were confirmed in at least three fuel reservoirs the eve of the Russian attack, followed by a massive fire at the facility, Kyiv reported.
Separately, it was the airfield at Diaguilebo in the Riazan region of Russia. Kiev says this is the base for air refueling and escorting fighter jets and is used to support missile strikes on Ukrainian territory.
Ukrainian forces said early on Thursday that Ukraine had crashed into a Russian missile base in the Bryansk region and damaged the Iskander missile launcher.
According to Ukrainian military general staff, a target unit near the city of Klinsi tried to fire before attacking Ukrainian territory (probably aiming for Kiev).
Iskander is a short-range ballistic missile system used by Moscow for precise strikes against military and infrastructure targets. Overnight on Friday, Russia launched six Iskander ballistic missiles in Ukraine – and Kiev was able to intercept four of them.
The Briance region of Russia is adjacent to the Smie region of Ukraine, which is a major target for Moscow’s attack operations.
Moscow’s “retaliation” manipulation “SpiderWeb”
Three days after Ukrainian bold operation against Russian military airfields and heavy bombers, Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to “retaliate” against Ukraine. He invaded more than three years ago, with Moscow launching missiles every day and launching drone strikes against Ukrainian cities and civil targets.
President Donald Trump said Putin told him in a call Wednesday that he told him about it.
The Russian president has not made public comment on Kiev’s operations since Sunday, when Ukraine struck more than 40 Russian bombers at four airfields.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian Voldimia Zelenki said Kiev would not launch a drone strike against Russian strategic bombers if Moscow accepted the Ukrainian call for a ceasefire.
Ukraine has repeatedly urged Russia to accept the 30-day ceasefire proposal supported by Russia. Kiev says it is the first step towards ending Russia’s full war against Ukraine.
The Ukrainian president commented on Russia’s “retaliation” attacks, saying that “Russia will not change its stripes – another massive strike on cities and ordinary lives” refers to Moscow’s regular attacks on Ukrainian civilians.
“Russia must take responsibility for this. Since the first minute of this war, they have been amazing cities and villages to destroy lives,” Zelensky added, calling for more pressure on Moscow by Ukrainian western partners, particularly the United States.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to impose sanctions on Russia if he has not seen progress in peace talks between Kiev and Moscow.
When asked by a reporter on Thursday about whether there would be a deadline for implementing sanctions, Trump replied, “Yes, that’s on the deadline in my mind.”
“We have done a lot with the world to enable Ukraine to protect itself. But now it’s a moment when everyone in America, Europe and the world can stop this war by putting pressure on Russia,” Zelensky said.
“If someone is giving the war time to take their lives without putting pressure on them, it’s accomplice and accountability. We have to act decisively.”
