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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy (45) has promised the Ukrainians more hits in the Russian regions in 2024 – and that is what he gets.
Last Wednesday, flashes of light lit up the sky above the Russian border town of Klintsy in Bryansk Oblast. Local officials quickly announced that drones launched by “Ukrainian terrorists” had flown across the border about 12 miles south. There is no danger because the Ukrainian flying objects have been successfully destroyed. There was no damage or fire.
However, the “all clear” did not reassure Klinzy residents, the Kyiv Post reported. Posts from angry citizens emerged on social media showing that the city’s ‘oil depot’ was on fire – and that the fire was anything but small. Clouds of oily smoke rose above meter-high flames into the clear, blue winter sky. A Rosneft fuel warehouse went up completely in flames.
The Russian Defense Ministry downplayed the matter. A single Ukrainian drone caused a small fire when it crashed. The emergency services quickly brought the fire under control.
Ukraine adopts Kremlin tactics
Once again, the residents of Klintsy proved with their posts on social networks that this was a lie. The discrepancy between what Moscow said and what they observed on the ground was too obvious. New images of the fire made the rounds. “It’s getting bigger!”, “Terrible!” and “That’s Klinzy!”, several new messages said. Ultimately, authorities had to admit that the fire was out of control. The fire was not finally extinguished until Saturday.
Such incidents are no longer uncommon in Russia. Behind this lies a new, advanced strategy of the Ukrainian armed forces. With targeted attacks with long-range drones and attacking Russian infrastructure, the Ukrainians are causing discontent among the population and exposing the incompetence of the Russian air defense.
Ukraine is using a Kremlin tactic. Because: Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin (71) and his Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu (68) are probably all too familiar with attack plans on infrastructure targets. Why not order such attacks on civilian and energy supply infrastructure in Ukraine this winter and in recent winters?
Ukrainians mock Russian air defense
The drone attack in Klintsy was followed on Sunday by another on the Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga, less than two hundred kilometers from St. Petersburg. Ukrainian drones had temporarily disabled the port facility “crucial for military operations,” a spokesperson for Ukraine’s domestic secret service SBU told the Kyiv Post. At the same time, a violent explosion occurred on Sunday at the Shchelovsky Wal factory in Tula, the heart of Russia’s arms industry. The site is intended for the production of Russian air defense systems of the Panzir type. Soviet-era tanks are also being made suitable for use in Ukraine.
Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuri Ihnat ridiculed Russian air defense in an interview with the Ukrainian magazine “Focus”. It is sparsely distributed in most places and extremely vulnerable. For the Ukrainians, much of Russian airspace represents an “open target” into which Ukrainian drones can penetrate at will.
Source: Blick
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
