Ukraine’s military intelligence said on Friday that a recent drone attack on an airport in northwestern Russia — that damaged several transport planes — was carried out from within Russian territory.
The claim, falling on the first day of the school year, came as Russian President Vladimir Putin told Russian students that their country was “invincible” while police in Kyiv scrambled to respond to bomb threats in schools.
This week’s attack on Russia’s Pskov airport, which is approximately 700km from Ukraine, marked the latest strike on Russian territory since Kyiv vowed in July to “return” the conflict to Moscow.
Photo: AP
“The drones used to attack the ‘Kresty’ air base in Pskov were launched from Russia,” Ukraine’s Chief of Defense Intelligence Kyrylo Budanov said on social media Friday.
“Four Russian IL-76 military transport planes were hit as a result of the attack. Two were destroyed and two were seriously damaged,” he added.
Budanov said the aircraft had been used by the defense ministry to transport troops and cargo.
The Kremlin said this week that military experts were working to find out which routes the drones were taking in order “to prevent such situations in the future.”
Asked about Ukrainian claims on Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment, and instead deferred questions to the defense ministry.
The region of Pskov, which was also targeted by drones in May, is surrounded by NATO members Estonia and Latvia to its west and Belarus to its south.
Budanov’s comments came hours after Russian air defenses destroyed a drone approaching Moscow, the city’s mayor said, a day after a similar attack on the capital.
Russia’s defense ministry said early yesterday its forces had destroyed three Ukrainian naval drones targeting the strategic Crimea bridge which connects the peninsula to the Russian mainland.
Ukrainian forces have been making slow gains against Russian positions, particularly in the south of the country, since launching a counteroffensive in June.
However, the White House on Friday said that Ukrainian forces have made “notable progress” in recent days against Russian troops in their southern offensive.
“Any objective observer of this counteroffensive, you can’t deny ... that they have made progress now,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
Meanwhile, US President Biden’s administration would for the first time send controversial armor-piercing munitions containing depleted uranium to Ukraine, according to a document seen by Reuters and separately confirmed by two US officials.
The rounds, which could help destroy Russian tanks, are part of a new military aid package for Ukraine set to be unveiled next week. The munitions can be fired from US Abrams tanks that, according to a person familiar with the matter, are expected be delivered to Ukraine in the coming weeks.
An official said that the coming aid package would be worth between US$240 million and US$375 million depending on what is included.
The package’s value and contents were still being finalized, the officials said.
Although Britain sent depleted-uranium munitions to Ukraine earlier this year, it would be the first US shipment of the ammunition and would likely cause controversy.
Usage of depleted-uranium munitions has been fiercely debated, with opponents like the International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons saying there are dangerous health risks from ingesting or inhaling depleted-uranium dust, including cancer and birth defects.
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