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First Post
5 minutes ago
- First Post
Ukrainian drone strikes force Kremlin to scale down Navy Day celebrations
Russia dramatically scaled back its Navy Day festivities on Sunday due to mounting security concerns amid a surge in Ukrainian drone attacks. The Kremlin cancelled traditional warship parades in major port cities including St. Petersburg, with officials citing the need to prioritise public safety. read more Russian President Vladimir Putin, second left arrives to visit the frigate "Admiral Grigorovich" in Kronstadt, outside St. Petersburg during Navy Day celebration, Russia. AP Russia scaled back its Navy Day celebrations on Sunday, citing security concerns amid ongoing Ukrainian drone attacks that continue to challenge the Kremlin. Russian authorities called off the warship parades that are typically held to commemorate the annual Navy Day celebrations in St. Petersburg, the Kaliningrad region on the Baltic, and the far-eastern port of Vladivostok. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to reporters' questions about why the parade in St. Petersburg was called off, even as President Vladimir Putin arrived in his hometown to tour the navy headquarters, by saying that 'it's linked to the overall situation, security reasons, which are above all else.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Over the course of the night, 99 Ukrainian drones were shot down by Russian air defences, according to the Russian Defence Ministry. It claimed that 51 more drones were shot down close to St. Petersburg later that day. According to local officials, a woman was injured by drone fragments in the Lomonosov area. Due to the drone threat, the Pulkovo airport in St. Petersburg halted dozens of flights early on Sunday. Putin paid a visit to St. Petersburg's historic Admiralty headquarters to receive reports on four-day naval manoeuvres that ended on Sunday. 150 vessels from the Baltics to the Pacific participated in the July Storm exercise. In addition to promising to increase the navy's training and build more warships, Putin also stated that 'the navy's strike power and combat capability will rise to a qualitatively new level.' He also visited the Admiral Grigorovich frigate of the Baltic Fleet at the Kronstadt naval base just west of St. Petersburg to hail its crew for fending off a Ukrainian drone attack in the region earlier in the day. Reducing the scale of the Navy Day celebrations reflects Moscow's worries about Ukraine's sweeping drone attacks across the country. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In a series of strikes earlier in the war now in its fourth year, Ukraine sank several Russian warships in the Black Sea, crippling Moscow's naval capability and forcing it to redeploy its fleet from Russia-occupied Crimea to Novorossiysk. And in an audacious June 1 attack code-named 'Spiderweb,' Ukraine used drones to hit several Russian air bases hosting long-range bombers across Russia, from the Arctic Kola Peninsula to Siberia. The drones were launched from trucks covertly placed near the bases, taking the Russian military by surprise in a humiliating blow to the Kremlin. The raid destroyed or damaged many of the bombers that had been used by Moscow to launch aerial attacks on Ukraine, providing a major morale boost for Kyiv at a time when Kyiv's undermanned and under-gunned forces are facing Russian attacks along the 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line. Russia continued to batter Ukraine with drone and missile strikes Sunday. In Sumy in Ukraine's northeast, a drone attack damaged civil infrastructure objects, an administrative building and non-residential premises, leaving three people wounded. Elsewhere in the region, two men died after being blown up by a land mine and another woman was injured from a drone attack on another community in the region, the regional military administration said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD French President Emmanuel Macron had a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday and said later on X that he reaffirmed France's support for Kyiv and vowed to raise pressure on Moscow to force it to 'agree to a ceasefire that paves the way for talks leading to a solid and lasting peace, with full European involvement.'
Hindustan Times
4 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Russia cancels annual navy parade citing 'security reasons'
Russia said on Sunday a major annual navy parade had been cancelled for "security reasons", without specifying the threat or concern. The drills, launched earlier this week in the Baltic and Caspian seas as well as in the Arctic and Pacific oceans, involved more than 150 ships and over 15,000 troops, Putin said(Reuters) "It has to do with the general situation. Security reasons are of utmost importance," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, quoted by Russian news agencies. The parade was meant to be the highlight of Russia's Navy Day, which falls on the last Sunday of July each year and honours the country's sailors. But local authorities in the coastal city of Saint Petersburg, where the warships and submarines were scheduled to pass, said on Friday the parade had been cancelled without giving a reason. Russian President Vladimir Putin -- who re-established Navy Day in 2017, nearly four decades after it was cancelled in Soviet times -- appeared in a video message hailing the "bravery" and "heroism" of Russia's sailors participating in the offensive in Ukraine. "We are celebrating the holiday in a working atmosphere," Putin said later on Sunday, in a video address to Russian forces involved in large-scale naval manoeuvres called "July Storm". The drills, launched earlier this week in the Baltic and Caspian seas as well as in the Arctic and Pacific oceans, involved more than 150 ships and over 15,000 troops, Putin said. "Our main task is to ensure Russia's security and firmly protect the sovereignty and national interests," Putin said in Saint Petersburg, where he was travelling on Sunday, according to the Kremlin. Russia, which launched its military operation on Ukraine in February 2022 with daily bombardments of its neighbour, has faced retaliatory Ukrainian drone strikes on its territory in recent months. The Russian defence ministry said on Sunday that 100 Ukrainian drones were downed overnight. At least 10 of them were intercepted not far from Saint Petersburg and a woman was wounded, the governor for the northwestern Leningrad region, Aleksandr Drozdenko, said on Telegram. That drone assault also disrupted operations at Saint Petersburg's Pulkovo airport, delaying dozens of flights, the facility's authorities said.
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
Putin's War Machine UNLEASHED: Missiles, Warships, and Fighter Jets Fire in Massive Naval Drill
FULL: Putin's EMERGENCY Nuclear Address; Reveals Russia's New War Strategy In Oceans & Seas On Russian Navy Day, President Vladimir Putin unveiled a bold new naval strategy aimed at asserting Moscow's influence across global waters Putin declared the updated doctrine will 'protect Russia's legitimate interests in the World Ocean,' signaling a more assertive maritime posture amid rising global tensions. The announcement comes as Russia ramps up its naval modernization and strategic deployments, particularly in contested regions like the Arctic, Black Sea, and Indo-Pacific. Analysts see the move as a direct response to NATO's growing presence and Western sanctions, marking a significant escalation in Russia's global military ambitions. 2.9K views | 2 hours ago
