On Saturday, Ukraine reported that it had successfully targeted two ammunition storage facilities in Russia, demonstrating an increase in their capacity to hit objectives situated deep within Russian territory. Russian authorities confirmed an attack by Ukraine on one of these storage depots, located in the southern area of Krasnodar, involving the use of drone technology. Implementations of local contingency plans are underway in response to the strike.
Ukraine’s military general staff disclosed in a statement that the targeted ammunition depots were situated in Tikhoretsk, within the Krasnodar region, and Oktyabrsky, located in the western district of Tver. According to them, the depot in Tikhoretsk is one of the top three largest occupiers’ ammunition storage sites and a crucial nexus in Russia’s military logistics system.
The statement also conveyed that Ukraine had intelligence indicating the presence of a train within the depot’s premises at the time of the strike. This train purportedly was transporting 2,000 tonnes of ammunition, including some from North Korea. Verification of this report remains inconclusive.
A source from within Ukraine’s security sector confirmed the use of drones in the strikes and remained anonymous. They also informed that the strike in Tikhoretsk was executed jointly by Ukraine’s SBU intelligence service and the military, while the SBU independently handled the Oktyabrsky strike. Over the course of the ongoing war, the SBU has carried out numerous drone strikes deep within Russia.
Venyamin Kondratyev, the governor of the Krasnodar region, noted on the Telegram messaging platform that measures are being taken to mitigate the effects of the attack, including the safe evacuation of its residents. Despite the damage, Kondratyev assured that all threats to the population have been neutralised, although ensuring the total safety of the territory would require some time. More than 100 residents of the Tikhoretsk and Vyselkovsky districts have been lodged in hotels, while others have sought refuge with familial relations.
Ukraine has been employing long-range drones to narrow the weaponry disparity with Russia, a country known for its significant arsenal of long-range missiles. Ukraine is also petitioning its western partners for authorisation to utilise the long-range missiles provided to them for penetrating strikes within Russian borders.
An insider mentioned that SBU drones had targeted and hit unidentified installations at Russia’s Shaikovka military airfield.
In a recent overnight assault by Russian missiles, a 12-year-old boy and two senior women in Kryvyi Rih, a central Ukrainian city, died, according to the regional governor. Russian news agencies reported that Russia had targeted Ukrainian power facilities overnight using advanced weaponry and drones. – Reuters
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