Ukraine Launches Heaviest Drone Attack on Russia, Hits Moscow and Annexed Crimea

Ukraine launched one of its heaviest drone attacks on Russian territory and annexed Crimea, with Russia’s Defense Ministry reporting that at least 660 Ukrainian drones were downed across 12 regions Thursday night into Friday.

“Ukraine unleashes one of its heaviest drone bombardments of Russia Ukraine unleashes one of its heaviest drone bombardments of Russia Ukraine launched a major nighttime attack on a dozen Russian regions, Russian-held Crimea and the surrounding seas, Moscow’s Defense Ministry said Friday, in what appeared to be one of Kyiv’s biggest drone assaults since the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion more than four years ago”

AP News

The bombardment followed Zelensky’s promise earlier this week to launch “a 40-day influence operation” aimed at “compelling [Russia] to end the war,” and the attack targeted areas including Moscow and the surrounding area, St. Petersburg, Crimea and Russian-occupied territory on the war’s eastern front.

AP News

In the Tula region south of Moscow, a hydroelectric plant and a chemical plant were reportedly damaged, and the chemical plant was described as a key piece of Russia’s explosives infrastructure that Zelensky previously said was important.

The attack also struck Crimea, where at least two military vessels were hit and air defense systems were hit in Crimea’s eastern Kerch region, while the full extent of damage remained unclear as Russia typically conceals information about the reality of Ukraine’s successes.

On the Ukrainian side, Russian strikes on Kharkiv killed at least two civilians and injured seven others after Russia launched a barrage of drones and guided bombs on 16 towns, and Ukrainian defenses stopped 174 out of 186 Russian drones in that attack.

Authorities in Russian-annexed Crimea declared an “emergency situation” on Friday to ease the fallout from increasing Ukrainian aerial attacks on the peninsula, with the Moscow-installed governor Sergey Aksyonov saying, “A decision has been made … to sign decrees declaring a regional-level emergency situation in the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.”

The same reporting said the emergency situation would allow for a “rapid resolution of tasks related to ensuring the stable operation of all sectors,” as fuel shortages and power cuts were described as triggered by Ukrainian attacks on logistics chains and oil facilities across Crimea, the rest of Russian-occupied Ukraine and southern Russia.

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Ukraine’s Security Service said it used drones to strike Russian navy ships and air defense radars in Kerch, naming the Volga and the Vyatka and the cargo-passenger ferry Petropavlovsk, and claiming the strikes started a large fire.

Moscow’s Defense Ministry said Russian air defenses intercepted 660 Ukrainian drones, while Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported that 47 Ukrainian drones were downed as they flew toward the Russian capital and did not report casualties or damage.

In parallel, the AP reported that Zelenskyy said he ordered “a 40-day influence operation” aimed at “compelling (Russia) to end the war,” and noted that Russia and Ukraine exchanged prisoners of war with 160 from each side returning home on Friday.

Ten years after Russia annexed Crimea, multiple outlets framed the peninsula as central to the war’s trajectory, with Euronews saying that on March 18, 2014, Vladimir Putin signed the decree that formalized the annexation of Crimea by Russia.

“In short: Ukraine has launched one of its largest ever drone attacks on Russia since the Kremlin's full-scale invasion more than four years ago”

Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Euronews also described how the annexation followed a referendum on March 16, 2014 that gathered 96.8% of votes in favor of joining Russia, and it said the vote was organized without any international observers while the region was militarily occupied.

In a separate account, TRT Français said Türkiye “does not recognize the 'de facto situation in Crimea,' describing it as a 'violation of international law,'” and said Türkiye would continue to closely monitor the situation on the peninsula with attention to the Crimean Tatars.

The same TRT Français report said Russia annexed the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in 2014 following an “illegitimate referendum,” and it said the action was widely regarded as illegal by the international community, including Türkiye and the United Nations General Assembly.

As the drone campaign and strikes continued, the sources tied the immediate attacks to the longer stakes of Crimea’s status, with the New York Post describing Russia’s holding of Crimea since 2014 and the AP reporting that Ukraine’s drones hit Russian areas including annexed Crimea.