Kyiv hits Russian airbase after Moscow pounds Ukraine with hundreds of drones
Ukraine's military General Staff said Ukrainian forces had struck the Borisoglebsk airbase in Russia's Voronezh region, describing it as the 'home base' of Russia's Su-34, Su-35S and Su-30SM fighter jets.
Writing on Facebook, the General Staff said it hit a depot containing glide bombs, a training aircraft and 'possibly other aircraft'.
It was a rocky start to the day, with more than 500 Russian attack drones and missiles. Difficult, but a significant number were shot down. Interceptor drones demonstrated important performance today and we are scaling this up to the hilt.
Today marks an important decision in… pic.twitter.com/TFTTyVjxLK — Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 4, 2025
Russian officials did not immediately comment on the attack.
Such attacks on Russian airbases aim to dent Russia's military capability and demonstrate Ukraine's capability to hit high-value targets in Russia.
Last month, Ukraine said it destroyed more than 40 Russian planes stationed at several airfields deep in Russia's territory in a surprise drone attack.
Russia fired 322 drones and decoys into Ukraine overnight into Saturday, Ukraine's air force said. Of these, 157 were shot down and 135 were lost, likely having been electronically jammed.
Metro stations are used as bomb shelters in Kyiv (AP)
According to the air force, Ukraine's western Khmelnytskyi region was the main target of the attack. Regional governor Serhii Tyurin said no damage, injuries or deaths had been reported.
Russia has been stepping up its long-range attacks on Ukraine. Waves of drones and missiles targeted Kyiv overnight into Friday in the largest aerial assault since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began, killing one person and wounding at least 26 others.
The fresh wave of attacks came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that he had a 'very important and productive' phone call with US President Donald Trump.
I had a very important and fruitful conversation with @POTUS. I congratulated President Trump and the entire American people on the US Independence Day.
We - in Ukraine - are grateful for all the support provided. It helps us protect lives, safeguard our freedom and… pic.twitter.com/kQ3Byipvd2 — Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 4, 2025
The two leaders discussed how Ukrainian air defences might be strengthened, possible joint weapons production between the US and Ukraine, and broader U.S-led efforts to end the war with Russia, according to a statement by Mr Zelenksy.
Asked on Friday night by reporters about the call, Mr Trump said: 'We had a very good call, I think.'
When asked about finding a way to end the fighting, the US leader said: 'I don't know. I can't tell you whether or not that's going to happen.'
Strikes have continued on Kyiv (AP)
The US has paused some shipments of military aid to Ukraine, including crucial air defence missiles.
Ukraine's main European backers are considering how they can help pick up the slack. Mr Zelensky says plans are afoot to build up Ukraine's domestic arms industry, but scaling up will take time.
Russia's defence ministry said it shot down 94 Ukrainian drones overnight into Saturday, along with 12 further drones on Saturday morning. No casualties were reported.
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"Children are often used as a pretext for justifying more repressive measures. Framing repressive measures as necessary for the protection of children tends to receive less public resistance. "Many repressive policies, such as anti-LGBT measures, internet censorship and many others, were introduced in Russia using children as a justification."
