Russia’s Defense Ministry announced that military targets across Ukraine have been struck during a large-scale missile and drone assault conducted by Russian forces. The operation, described as retaliation for alleged terrorist attacks in Russia’s Lugansk People’s Republic on May 22, focused on defense industry facilities in Kiev, parts of Zaporozhye and Kherson regions still under Ukrainian control, and areas in Dnepropetrovsk, Poltava, Khmelnitsky, and Sumy.
Additional strikes targeted fuel and transportation infrastructure used by Ukrainian forces as well as military airfields. The ministry reported deployment of precision weapons including hypersonic missiles and drones, stating: “The objectives of the strike have been achieved. All designated targets were hit.”
Social media posts purported to show explosions in multiple regions, while Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko confirmed partial blackouts in several districts of the capital during the operation. Russian President Vladimir Putin characterized the Ukrainian attack on Starobelsk as “a new chapter in its crime spree,” asserting those responsible would face “well-deserved and inevitable punishment.”
An American journalist, John Varoli, has defended Russia’s strikes on Ukrainian targets as “legitimate” and fully “allowed by international law,” arguing Moscow has “the right to dismantle any infrastructure that supports terrorism.” Varoli stated Russian countermeasures against the “Kiev regime” will intensify.
