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Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Has Russia Moved Strategic Aviation Nearer to Alaska? What We Know
Russia has likely not moved one of its nuclear-capable heavy bombers further from Ukraine, analysts and satellite imagery indicate after reports suggested Moscow had transferred one of its hefty Tu-160 supersonic aircraft closer to Alaska following extensive Ukrainian strikes on Russian airfields. Ukraine said it hit 41 of Russia's expensive, hard-to-replace warplanes on June 1 in a meticulously timed operation across three different time zones using drones smuggled over the border. Ukrainian outlet Defence Express reported on Thursday that Russia had relocated one of its Tu-160 strategic bombers to the Anadyr airfield in Russia's far eastern Chukotka region, citing satellite imagery captured by the European Space Agency's Sentinel satellites on June 4. Satellite imagery provided to Newsweek by Planet Labs, captured of Anadyr on May 26 - prior to the audacious Ukrainian strikes - showed three aircraft lined up on the main apron. The image, while low quality, does not indicate the presence of the distinctively shaped Tu-160s, analysts said. A separate image from June 3 showed four aircraft on the main apron of the base, but none of the aircraft - including the one that appeared since May 26 - appear to be the world's heaviest operational bomber, experts told Newsweek. It is fairly standard practice for militaries to move aircraft around and may not indicate anything more than a "sensible approach to looking after your aircraft," said Frank Ledwidge, a senior lecturer in Law and War Studies at Portsmouth University in the U.K. and a former British military intelligence officer. Under the New START Treaty limiting nuclear weapons, strategic bombers have to be kept out in the open, Ledwidge added. Russia will likely move around its aircraft more following the success of the Ukrainian strikes, retired Air Marshal Greg Bagwell, a former senior commander in the U.K.'s Royal Air Force, told Newsweek. Kyiv said after the strikes, it had targeted at least one of Moscow's scarce A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft and several long-range, nuclear-capable bombers across four air bases thousands of miles apart. Russia reported drone assaults on five bases, including strikes on a long-range aviation hub in the country's far east that Kyiv did not publicly acknowledge. One Ukrainian official said 13 aircraft had been destroyed. Satellite imagery from the Siberian air base of Belaya and Olenya, an Arctic base in Murmansk-just two of the targeted bases-showed several destroyed Tu-95 and Tu-22 bombers. Ukraine said it had also attacked the Ivanovo airbase northeast of Moscow and Dyagilevo in the Ryazan region. The Belaya airfield sits just shy of 3,000 miles from Ukraine. At least six Russian Tu-95MS and four Tu-22M3 aircraft appear to have been destroyed, Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow for airpower at the U.K.-based Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), said in recent days. While unlikely to hack away at how many aerial assaults Russia can mount on Ukraine, the simultaneous strikes known as Operation Spiderweb caused roughly $7 billion in damage, according to Kyiv, and exposed how vulnerable airfields and their aircraft now are to drone strikes while landing an embarrassing slap on the Kremlin. U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier this week that Russian President Vladimir Putin had "very strongly" insisted he would retaliate for the strikes. The main base in Russian territory where the operation was masterminded was "directly next to" an FSB regional headquarters, Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelensky, said as he praised the "brilliant" operation. Russia's FSB domestic security agency is the main descendant of the Soviet-era KGB. Russia used a Tu-160 in intensive overnight missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, Kyiv's air force said on Friday. Moscow fired more than 400 attack drones, six ballistic missiles, 38 cruise missiles and one anti-radar air-to-surface missile at the war-torn country overnight, according to the air force. Ukraine's military separately said on Friday it had hit Dyagilevo in fresh strikes and the Engels long-range aviation hub in the Saratov region. Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email. Related Articles G7 Invite for Modi Signals India's Growing Weight for Democratic AllianceRussia Offers Political Asylum to Elon Musk Over Trump FeudRussia Reacts to Trump's 'Young Children Fighting' CommentUS Demands 'End' to Military Cooperation Between North Korea and Russia 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
Newsweek
2 days ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
Has Russia Moved Strategic Aviation Nearer to Alaska? What We Know
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Russia has likely not moved one of its nuclear-capable heavy bombers further from Ukraine, analysts and satellite imagery indicate after reports suggested Moscow had transferred one of its hefty Tu-160 supersonic aircraft closer to Alaska following extensive Ukrainian strikes on Russian airfields. Ukraine said it hit 41 of Russia's expensive, hard-to-replace warplanes on June 1 in a meticulously timed operation across three different time zones using drones smuggled over the border. Ukrainian outlet Defence Express reported on Thursday that Russia had relocated one of its Tu-160 strategic bombers to the Anadyr airfield in Russia's far eastern Chukotka region, citing satellite imagery captured by the European Space Agency's Sentinel satellites on June 4. Satellite imagery provided to Newsweek by Planet Labs, captured of Anadyr on May 26 — prior to the audacious Ukrainian strikes — showed three aircraft lined up on the main apron. The image, while low quality, does not indicate the presence of the distinctively shaped Tu-160s, analysts said. A separate image from June 3 showed four aircraft on the main apron of the base, but none of the aircraft — including the one that appeared since May 26 — appear to be the world's heaviest operational bomber, experts told Newsweek. A Tupolev Tu-160 heavy strategic bomber and an Ilyushin Il-78 aerial refueling tanker take part in a dress rehearsal of a military parade marking the 77th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World... A Tupolev Tu-160 heavy strategic bomber and an Ilyushin Il-78 aerial refueling tanker take part in a dress rehearsal of a military parade marking the 77th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, in Moscow, Russia, on May 7, 2022. More Anton Denisov / Sputnik via AP It is fairly standard practice for militaries to move aircraft around and may not indicate anything more than a "sensible approach to looking after your aircraft," said Frank Ledwidge, a senior lecturer in Law and War Studies at Portsmouth University in the U.K. and a former British military intelligence officer. Under the New START Treaty limiting nuclear weapons, strategic bombers have to be kept out in the open, Ledwidge added. Russia will likely move around its aircraft more following the success of the Ukrainian strikes, retired Air Marshal Greg Bagwell, a former senior commander in the U.K.'s Royal Air Force, told Newsweek. Kyiv said after the strikes, it had targeted at least one of Moscow's scarce A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft and several long-range, nuclear-capable bombers across four air bases thousands of miles apart. Russia reported drone assaults on five bases, including strikes on a long-range aviation hub in the country's far east that Kyiv did not publicly acknowledge. One Ukrainian official said 13 aircraft had been destroyed. Satellite imagery from the Siberian air base of Belaya and Olenya, an Arctic base in Murmansk—just two of the targeted bases—showed several destroyed Tu-95 and Tu-22 bombers. Ukraine said it had also attacked the Ivanovo airbase northeast of Moscow and Dyagilevo in the Ryazan region. The Belaya airfield sits just shy of 3,000 miles from Ukraine. Satellite imagery, provided to Newsweek by Planet Labs, shows four aircraft on the main apron at the Anadyr airbase in Russia's Chukotka region close to Alaska on June 3, 2025. None of the aircraft pictured... Satellite imagery, provided to Newsweek by Planet Labs, shows four aircraft on the main apron at the Anadyr airbase in Russia's Chukotka region close to Alaska on June 3, 2025. None of the aircraft pictured are Russia's Tu-160 heavy nuclear-capable bombers, analysts said. More Planet Labs At least six Russian Tu-95MS and four Tu-22M3 aircraft appear to have been destroyed, Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow for airpower at the U.K.-based Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), said in recent days. While unlikely to hack away at how many aerial assaults Russia can mount on Ukraine, the simultaneous strikes known as Operation Spiderweb caused roughly $7 billion in damage, according to Kyiv, and exposed how vulnerable airfields and their aircraft now are to drone strikes while landing an embarrassing slap on the Kremlin. U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier this week that Russian President Vladimir Putin had "very strongly" insisted he would retaliate for the strikes. Satellite imagery, provided to Newsweek by Planet Labs, shows three aircraft on the main apron at the Anadyr airbase in Russia's Chukotka region close to Alaska on May 26, 2025. Satellite imagery, provided to Newsweek by Planet Labs, shows three aircraft on the main apron at the Anadyr airbase in Russia's Chukotka region close to Alaska on May 26, 2025. Planet Labs The main base in Russian territory where the operation was masterminded was "directly next to" an FSB regional headquarters, Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelensky, said as he praised the "brilliant" operation. Russia's FSB domestic security agency is the main descendant of the Soviet-era KGB. Russia used a Tu-160 in intensive overnight missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, Kyiv's air force said on Friday. Moscow fired more than 400 attack drones, six ballistic missiles, 38 cruise missiles and one anti-radar air-to-surface missile at the war-torn country overnight, according to the air force. Ukraine's military separately said on Friday it had hit Dyagilevo in fresh strikes and the Engels long-range aviation hub in the Saratov region. Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email.
The Guardian
06-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
UK to continue to supply intelligence to Ukraine after US cutoff
Britain will continue to supply intelligence to Ukraine, though the more limited capabilities on offer from London and other European countries will make it difficult to replace the flow halted from the US earlier this week. The UK will also continue to supply its analysis of the raw data, sources said on Thursday, though in line with normal intelligence practice it will not simply pass on US information obtained via long-established sharing arrangements between the two countries. 'They are not as far reaching as US capabilities, not at the same scale and not able to take their place,' a former Whitehall insider said. But they will allow Ukraine to maintain some early warning from attack and a degree of deep strike capability into Russia. Reconnaissance data collected from satellites, ground stations, surveillance aircraft such as Rivet Joint, and even covertly deployed ground forces is accumulated and shared with Ukraine in conjunction with open source material to enable damaging deep missile and drone strikes into Russia. France also said publicly that it would continue to provide intelligence to Ukraine. Sebastien Lecornu, the country's defence minister, said that while the US decision would have a 'significant operational impact' Paris would continue to help with its 'sovereign intelligence'. The French minister said the UK's position was 'more complicated' because its intelligence apparatus was more closely bound up with Washington – though British sources emphasised there had been a long history of competition as well as cooperation between the UK and US. One expert suggested the US decision to halt its intelligence could make it easier for Russia to renew a stalled offensive towards Ukraine's second city. The Kremlin could 'move everything inside its borders near Kharkiv and attack again', Dr Jade McGlynn, of King's College London, said. There are concerns Ukraine would struggle to detect the launch of bombers from Russian air bases and incoming missiles, though there was a warning on Wednesday before a missile attack on a hotel in the central city of Kryvyi Rih, which killed four and injured at least 32. A defence expert said he believed the intelligence freeze meant Ukraine could no longer detect incoming Iskander-M ballistic missiles and their North Korean equivalents, KN-23s and KN-24s. Valeriy Ryabikh, the editor of the Defence Express consulting firm, said the US had jeopardised the safety of civilians with its decision. However, Ryabikh suggested the cutoff would not significantly affect the situation on the frontline. 'We have our own intelligence officers, satellite services and agents in Russia. This is enough to strike stationary objects deep inside the Russian Federation,' he said. The Institute for the Study of War said the US decision 'will damage Ukraine's ability to defend itself against ongoing Russian attacks', and gave examples of successful long-range strikes by the Ukrainian military that would prove harder to execute. That included the bombing of an ammunition facility near Toropets, Tver oblast, overnight on 17-18 September 2024 which 'destroyed 'two to three months of Russia's ammunition supply' at a site that stored ballistic missiles, glide bombs and other artillery ammunition. A day after the ban was announced by the CIA director, John Ratcliffe, another member of the Republican administration said the US decision was primarily political. Keith Kellogg, Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, said the idea was 'sort of like hitting a mule with a two by four across the nose. You get their attention.' Speaking at an event organised by the Council on Foreign Relations thinktank, Kellogg said the goal was to force Ukraine to 'engage in diplomatic activities' and to get them to set out 'their term sheet', or outline negotiating position, for a deal. 'So, more of anything, it's a forcing function,' he added. Donald Trump has said repeatedly that he wants to bring about an end to the three-year war in Ukraine, and has held preliminary discussions with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, while at the same time pressuriing Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy to agree to peace negotiations. Senior Trump administration officials will travel to Saudi Arabia to meet Ukrainian officials next week, Fox News and Axios reported on Thursday. On Monday, the US announced it would halt military aid for Ukraine after a meeting at the White House in which the intelligence -sharing ban was also agreed, though it did not start to be implemented until Wednesday. There were reports that, after the supply of targeting data was cut, US-supplied Himars rocket systems were abruptly turned off. The change was also thought to affect longer-range Atacms missiles, though stocks of these are limited and it is unclear how many Ukraine had left. Ukraine has only a small number of Himars launchers. But they have played a crucial role in the destruction of high-value Russian targets, such as ammunition dumps and logistics centres. The Kremlin has tried to hunt down Himars crews, who change locations frequently. Ukraine's military intelligence organisation, the HUR, also relies on some foreign intelligence to carry out sabotage operations inside Russia and for real-time updates on the deployment of Russian bomber planes on air bases. The agency is believed to be behind the killing of leading military figures, such as Lt Gen Igor Kirillov, the head of the Russian army's chemical weapons division. In December a bomb taped to an electric scooter blew up outside his Moscow apartment block, killing him and an aide as they left the building.
