Ukraine strikes deep inside Russia, destroys over 40 military aircraft in massive drone attack
Ukraine conducted a large drone attack on Russian military aircraft on Sunday (June 1), a security official told Reuters, saying 40 Russian warplanes were struck. If confirmed, the strikes would be the most damaging Ukrainian drone attack of the war, and would be a significant setback for Moscow. The official said that the strikes were conducted by the SBU domestic intelligence agency, and that they had simultaneously hit four Russian military air bases on Sunday. The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said more than 40 aircraft were hit, including Tu-95 and Tu-22 strategic bombers, which Russia uses to fire long-range missiles at Ukraine. Show more 11:25
01:53
01:32
03:21
01:31
03:08
10:09
09:24
09:02
05:27
03:25
03:36
03:36
03:42
10:19
04:04
10:10
02:00
02:34
10:27
12:35
10:31
10:14
08:02
02:31
03:32
08:52
07:36
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
22 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Op Spider's Web: Why Ukraine's attack prohibitively jacks up the costs for Russia
Over the last four years, Ukraine has generally been tight- lipped about its battlefront manoeuvres, but Operation Spider's Web is starkly different. Kyiv publicly disclosed a lot of information about the audacious operation that dealt the biggest blow of the war against Moscow's long range bomber fleet. Why? The answer to that question, according to Roman Sheremeta, Founding Rector, Distinguished Visiting Professor at the American University Kyiv, reveals how modern warfare now goes far beyond the battlefield. Firstly, the Russians would have figured it out anyway. The story would have come out anyway, given that more than 40 aircraft were destroyed across four Russian air bases. 'Satellite imagery, media leaks, and local reports would've told the story eventually. So why not own the narrative?' Sheremeta said in a post on X. Second: disclosure is the strategy here, given that this was not just a strike. It was a psychological ambush. Ukraine deliberately chose to reveal in explicit detail how it planned and then pulled off the operation — smuggling drones in decoy trucks, driving them 4,000 km through Russia, and remotely launching them under the enemy's nose. With this, now, every Russian cargo truck becomes a potential weapon. Every driver is a potential saboteur. And every highway — a threat vector. 'Result? Paranoia, friction, and skyrocketing internal costs'. The cost of the attack for Moscow goes far beyond the strategic bombers lost in the attack. Russia will now be forced to inspect every suspicious truck, monitor internal roads with military resources, distrust their own private truck drivers and slow down all logistics, civilian and military alike, Sheremeta said. This strains Russian creaking internal infrastructure, and could potentially choke supply chains and erode trust deep within Russian society. All this could potentially worsen the spiralling inflation in Russia, as supply chains get derailed. There are already reports of traffic jams in Irkutsk amid check posts being set up by the Russian law enforcement agencies and the military. With Ukraine's audacious drone attack, the war has suddenly reached deep inside the Russian mainland. The psychological scarring that it brings would take a long time to heal. 'Ukraine didn't just hit planes — it weaponized uncertainty. It turned Russia's vast territory into a battlefield of doubt. This is asymmetric warfare at its finest. You don't need to match your enemy plane-for-plane. You just need to make them afraid of their own shadow. That's how you win without even firing the next shot,' Sheremeta noted. The last place that the Russians would have looked was the lorries plying on its roads, including those deep in Siberia. This attack changes that. The drones hit some 35 per cent of Russia's strategic cruise missile carriers, causing an estimated $7 billion worth of damage in total. Ukrainian officials said 117 drones were used, which would cost a few hundred millions. The asymmetry is stark! Despite the overall strength in numbers, which could eventually decide the final outcome of this war, Ukraine has shown that it can pack a punch and has the wherewithal to execute a complex operation that seems to have been taken out straight from a spy movie. Also, Russia might not be in a position to replace these strategic bombers, most of which are not in production. That badly impacts Moscow's resolve to deliver cruise missiles into Ukraine the way it has been doing for so long. It also makes a mockery of Russia's intelligence capabilities. Russia would have been prepared for night time attacks by missiles launched from Ukraine on their air bases near the front lines. What they were clearly not prepared for was a daytime attack in bases far away from the frontlines. That is why the drone attacks were so successful. Almost like the Israeli pager bombings targeting Hezbollah inside Lebanon. What we have with Operation Spider's Web is not only a victory for Ukraine in terms of debilitating Russia's ability to launch cruise missiles against Ukraine, but actually a strategic victory that helps the West enormously. The tactical switch by Ukraine was something that Russia had not planned for. Kyiv had, so far, used long range drones launched from Ukraine, which then fly into Russian airspace and strike a variety of targets. But this attack was different and some of the airfields that were struck were 4000 km from Ukraine, and the operation did not involve these long range drones. Instead, these were small drones which were launched from containers on trucks. It seems that Ukraine took advantage of commercial trucking networks plying into Russia from parts of Europe or inside of Russia to deliver the weapons deep inside the territory of its enemy in a way that the Russian security services and military were clearly not ready for. Ukrainian officials indicated that Kyiv did not provide advance notice of the strikes to the Donald Trump administration. This operation appears to have used only Ukrainian equipment, and therefore Ukraine has clearly felt that it doesn't need to inform the US about this attack. Op Spider's Web was a message for the Kremlin that Ukraine can cause severe damage, deep inside Russia, just like the Russian strikes in Ukraine over the last four years. And it's a message for the other partners that have been supporting Ukraine, particularly for the US, which under Trump, has been wavering somewhat in its support. It is a message to its partners that Ukraine is still in this fight. And unlike Trump's assertion during the Oval Room slugfest, pugnacious Ukraine still holds some cards. Anil Sasi is National Business Editor with the Indian Express and writes on business and finance issues. He has worked with The Hindu Business Line and Business Standard and is an alumnus of Delhi University. ... Read More
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
25 minutes ago
- Business Standard
US pushes countries for best offers by June 4 as tariff deadline looms
In the draft, the US is asking countries to list their best proposals in a number of key areas, including tariff and quota offers for purchase of US industrial and agricultural products Reuters The Trump administration wants countries to provide their best offer on trade negotiations by Wednesday as officials seek to accelerate talks with multiple partners ahead of a self-imposed deadline in just five weeks, according to a draft letter to negotiating partners seen by Reuters. The draft, from the office of the United States Trade Representative, provides a window into how President Donald Trump plans to bring to a close unwieldy negotiations with dozens of countries that kicked off on April 9 when he paused his "Liberation Day" tariffs for 90 days until July 8 after stock, bond and currency markets revolted over the sweeping nature of the levies. The document suggests an urgency within the administration to complete deals against its own tight deadline. While officials such as White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett have repeatedly promised that several agreements were nearing completion, so far only one agreement has been reached with a major US trading partner: Britain. Even that limited pact was more akin to a framework for ongoing talks than a final deal. In the draft, the US is asking countries to list their best proposals in a number of key areas, including tariff and quota offers for purchase of US industrial and agricultural products and plans to remedy any non-tariff barriers. Other requested items include any commitments on digital trade and economic security, along with country-specific commitments, according to the letter. The US will evaluate the responses within days and offer "a possible landing zone" that could include a reciprocal tariff rate, according to the letter. It was unclear which countries would receive the letter, but it was directed at those with active negotiations that included meetings and exchanges of documents. Washington has been engaged in such talks with the European Union, Japan, Vietnam and India, among others. A USTR official said trade talks were ongoing. "Productive negotiations with many key trading partners continue at a rapid pace. It is in all parties' interest to take stock of progress and assess any next steps". 'REGARDLESS OF ONGOING LITIGATION' Tiffany Smith, vice president of global trade policy at the National Foreign Trade Council, welcomed the USTR moves. "We are encouraged that USTR is moving negotiations ahead as quickly as they can," she told Reuters, adding that trade deals that removed barriers for US companies abroad and lowered US tariffs would be "a win-win if they are done in a way that returns predictability and stability to trade relationships." Trump's ambitious - and often frenetic - tariff policy is a pillar of his "America First" economic agenda as he seeks to reshape US trade relationships, reduce trade deficits and protect American industries. Republican lawmakers are also banking on tariffs to add to federal revenue and offset the cost of the tax cut legislation now working its way through Congress. Trump's tariff policies have taken investors on a rollercoaster ride. In May, US stocks held their biggest rally of any month since November 2023, but that was after global indexes had cratered under the barrage of Trump's tariff announcements through February, March and early April. Stocks were little changed on Monday afternoon after Trump announced a surprise doubling of tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Friday at an event in Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, the legality of the approach used for imposing the most sweeping of his tariffs has been cast into doubt. Last Wednesday, the Court of International Trade ruled that Trump had overstepped his authority with tariffs devised under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, including the "Liberation Day" levies and earlier ones imposed on goods from Canada, Mexico and China related to Trump's accusations that the three countries have facilitated the flow of fentanyl into the US Less than 24 hours later, an appeals court temporarily paused that decision. The tariffs at the center of the legal dispute are expected to remain in effect as the case plays out. The draft letter to trading partners warns them not to believe the tariffs will be sidelined if the court rules against Trump's use of the IEEPA. "Regardless of ongoing litigation concerning the President's reciprocal tariff action in US courts, the President intends to continue this tariff program pursuant to other robust legal authorities if necessary, so it is important that we continue our discussions on these matters," the draft says. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Editing by Dan Burns and Matthew Lewis)
India.com
28 minutes ago
- India.com
Who is Nicolas Aujula, whose chilling prediction for 2025 has left everyone in shock
A 38-year-old hypnotherapist and spiritual advisor named Nicolas Aujula, who lives in London, is gaining attention around the world. That's because some of the predictions he made earlier have actually come true, three of them, to be exact. Now, he has made a bold prediction for the year 2025, and it's causing quite a stir globally. While there is no scientific proof behind his visions, Nicolas says he gets these insights through intuition. His latest and most alarming prediction is that a third world war could break out in 2025. He even warned that the UK would not be spared from its effects. Interestingly, a real-world event seems to reflect part of what he foresaw. A Russian Lieutenant General, Yaroslav Moskalik, was recently killed in a car bomb explosion in Moscow. The Kremlin blamed Ukraine for the attack, but Russian media started directing anger toward Britain. They accused British intelligence of supplying explosives for the attack and called for revenge. This turn of events has led many people to believe that Nicolas's warning might not be far off. The year 2025 'is a year where there is a lack of compassion in the world, where we will see horrific acts of human evil and violence towards each other in the name of religion and nationalism,' the Daily Mirror quoted Nicolas as saying. Third world war might be coming Nicolas Aujula has warned that the world could witness horrifying violence by the middle of 2025 the kind that would deeply shame humanity. With the way global tensions are rising right now, his predictions are starting to worry people across the world. Recently, a conflict broke out between India and Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack which made India launch Operation Sindoor. Interestingly, countries like China and Turkey quietly supported Pakistan from behind the scenes. Meanwhile, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war is heating up again. With all these developments, Nicolas's warning about global war is becoming hard to ignore. More Predictions for 2025 For 2025, Nicolas has also spoken of major natural disasters that could hit different parts of the world. He even predicted the rise of new diseases. Given the recent emergence of new COVID-19 variants, his prediction seems to be aligning with real events. Nicolas has also voiced concern about the growing impact of climate change. He believes its effects will become even more obvious and intense in the coming year. He has predicted the political downfall of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer paired with a worldwide surge in inflation. Amid the turmoil, however, he also foresees a moment of reconciliation between Britain's Prince William and Prince Harry. In the US, he believes that President Trump will enjoy a successful year despite legal battles, negative press, and a resurgence of traditional values. In terms of medical advancements, he anticipates progress in lab-grown organs. Why people are taking Nicolas seriously Nicolas Aujula is being taken seriously across the world because many of his past predictions have come true. For example, he had predicted that Donald Trump would make a political comeback in 2024, something that actually happened. He also spoke about the rising influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI), which we are clearly seeing everywhere today. In the past, he had also foreseen major global events like the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the massive fire at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. Since so many of his earlier predictions proved to be accurate, people are now more concerned about what he's said for 2025.
