Moscow has confirmed that several of its airfields came under attack by Ukrainian drones. Western media reports are calling the Kyiv offensive "an ambitious attack", as nuclear-capable Tupolev Tu-95MS strategic bombers of the Russian Air Force were targeted deep in Siberia. Videos on the internet showed Russian personnel running for cover as FPV drones launched by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) turned several aircraft into fireballs.
Russia's Defence Ministry acknowledged on the Telegram messaging app that Ukraine had launched the strikes across five regions on Sunday. It said the attacks were repelled in all but two regions — Murmansk in the far north and Irkutsk in Siberia — where "the launch of FPV drones from an area in close proximity to airfields resulted in several aircraft catching fire", reported Reuters. The fires were extinguished without casualties. Some individuals involved in the attacks have been detained, the ministry said. Here are five latest developments as Kyiv managed to land a blow on Vladimir Putin ahead of the peace talks in Istanbul:
1. According to Moscow's Tass news agency, a truck driver was detained by police on suspicion of involvement in the attack. After videos showed UAVs taking off from stationary trucks on roadsides, it was officially confirmed that the Ukrainian drones did, in fact, launch from trucks located well within Russian territory. Mobile wooden cabins were reportedly smuggled into the country by the SBU for the safe storage of the drones until the day of the operation.
WATCH | Viral videos show Ukraine's drone attack destroying Russian bombers 'across airbases'
2. After the details of the attack surfaced, Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, posted a spider web emoji on both his X handle and Telegram channel. According to the BBC, it is an apparent reference to the name given to the assault by his nation — "Operation Spider's Web".
3. "Operation Spider's Web" took about one and a half years to plan, organise, and execute. It was personally overseen by Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the SBU claimed. After they were given the go-ahead, the wooden cabins stationed inside trucks were remotely opened, and the UAVs were launched towards the airbases.
4. Ukraine did not keep Donald Trump or the White House in the loop ahead of launching the large-scale attack, Reuters said, quoting highly placed government sources.
5. While early reports stated that as many as 40 Russian warplanes were hit by the FPV drones, the latest count has gone up to 41 — according to multiple media reports.
