Ukraine executed one of its largest and most coordinated aerial offensives against Russian territory on Tuesday, targeting critical infrastructure and military facilities deep within the country. The strikes involved U.S.-supplied ATACMS ballistic missiles, British Storm Shadow cruise missiles, and a fleet of drones, signaling an escalation in the nearly three-year conflict that has left thousands dead and millions displaced.
The Ukrainian General Staff confirmed the strikes reached as far as 1,100 kilometers inside Russian borders, hitting facilities in Bryansk, Saratov, Tula, and Tatarstan. Among the targets were chemical plants, ammunition depots, oil refineries, and storage sites supporting Russia's war efforts. Roman Busargin, governor of Saratov, described the scale of the attack on his region as "massive." Schools in Saratov and Engels, a nearby city home to a key airbase for Russian nuclear bombers, shifted to remote learning as a precaution.
Kyiv has framed the strikes as a strategic response to Russia's persistent assaults on Ukraine's energy infrastructure since the start of the war in February 2022. Ukrainian forces stated that drones were used to distract Russian air defenses, enabling missiles to strike high-value targets. "Each damaged ammunition depot, oil refinery, or chemical plant is a painful blow to Russia's ability to wage war in Ukraine," a source from Ukraine's Security Service said.
The Russian Defense Ministry claimed it intercepted all six U.S.-made ATACMS missiles and six British Storm Shadow missiles, as well as 146 drones deployed in the attack. Moscow's defense officials vowed retaliation, stating, "The actions of the Kyiv regime, supported by its Western curators, will not go unanswered." The ministry also reported that two additional Storm Shadow missiles were shot down over the Black Sea.
This escalation comes amid heightened tensions between the two nations and the broader geopolitical implications of Western military support for Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who in November described the conflict as edging toward a global confrontation, has previously launched new hypersonic ballistic missiles in response to Ukrainian strikes using Western-supplied weaponry.
The strikes caused widespread disruption across affected Russian regions. Nine airports in central and western Russia temporarily halted operations, and fires were reported at key facilities. In Tatarstan, a drone attack ignited a gas storage tank, creating plumes of thick smoke visible for miles. Ukrainian forces claimed responsibility for hitting critical sites, including a chemical plant in Bryansk that produces ammunition and explosives for Russian military operations.
In Saratov, the Engels oil depot was targeted for the second time in recent weeks. A previous drone strike on the facility caused a fire that took days to extinguish. The General Staff in Kyiv confirmed that its operations involved drone units and military intelligence aimed at degrading Russia's military-industrial capacity.
The escalation occurs as Ukraine faces mounting challenges along the front lines, particularly in the eastern Donetsk region. Russian forces have reclaimed territory there, including two villages that Kyiv had previously regained earlier in the conflict. Moscow described one of the areas as a critical logistics hub for Ukrainian forces. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials urged civilians in high-risk areas to evacuate as fighting intensified.
