Latest news with #FPVDrones
Fast Company
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Fast Company
Russia's drones have created a brand-new form of pollution
The Russian invasion of Ukraine will have long-lasting consequences for all of us. Like the 1939 invasion of Poland introduced the world to 'blitzkrieg'—high-speed tanks and air power quickly jumping enveloping and eliminating enemy lines—this war is the herald of a new military era of relentless unmanned war machines hunting the enemy through air, land, and water. The drones are part of a new, high-speed technological race with a major unintended consequence: endless miles of plastic string pollution. After Russia's wireless first-person view (FPV) drones were routinely thwarted by Ukrainian radio interference weapons, some unknown Russian engineer thought the best way to neutralize these countermeasures was by ditching radio signals for miles-long cables, just like some wire-guided anti-tank missiles use. The method proved successful for Russia. And now Ukranians have copied it, as the frontlines are quickly filling up with white plastic cables that sometimes cover entire fields, forests, and small towns. These plastic spider-webs are invading everything, as the two sides relentlessly launch wave after wave of these kamikaze machines, each of them equipped with spools of fiber-optic cables that directly connect the drones to the pilots that use joysticks and virtual reality goggles to control them. At the beginning, they could barely reach 3 to 6 miles. Today, they're striking targets at distances exceeding 25 miles. You would think that 25 miles of cable would be impossible for a light FPV drone to lift, but the fiber-optics cables are so thin and light that only weigh a few pounds. 'Three months ago, we were testing fiber-optic drones with a range of up to 12 miles. Today, these systems are already capable of hitting enemy targets at distances beyond 25 miles,' Mykhailo Fedorov, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, announced on Telegram at the end of July. 'Strikes at a depth of 25+ mils are becoming the new norm for fiber-optic drones,' he said. Russian videos now show spools extending to 31 miles that weigh less than 8.8 pounds—which makes them suitable for larger drones. You can also order the spools from China, complete with all the necessary electronics. Let's do some math. As of 2025, Ukraine's total FPV drone production capacity has surged to 200,000 units per month from the initial 20,000 units produced monthly in early 2024. Approximately 10% of the total Ukrainian drone output is now fiber-optic guided. The Russian numbers are not as clear. As of July 2025, tens of thousands of units of the wire-guided Prince Vandal drone are produced monthly, according to the official news agency TASS. Another source puts that number at 6,000 units per month. Let's say it's a conservative total of 15,000 drones for both sides. At 25 miles of cable per drone, that's 375,000 miles of plastic cable, enough to circle the Earth's equator 15 times. That's a lot of trash which will have a dramatic effect on agriculture, fauna and flora, and people's lives for years to come. Things will get bad before they get worse Of course, with their immediate survival on the line and with Trump and Putin playing Risk with their homeland, infinite plastic spiderwebs are the last thing that the Ukrainians are thinking about right now. But there is no doubt that, as this technological arms race accelerates, so will the environmental catastrophe for a country that has already been razed to the ground in many places. 'Due to their composition, these cables could persist in the environment for more than 600 years, posing a substantial long-term threat,' warns Leon Moreland, researcher at the Conflict and Environmental Observatory. With the new longer-range systems now being deployed on an industrial scale, the environmental impact is multiplying exponentially. The cables form dangerous networks across trees and clearings that will pose a significant risk of entanglement and death to many species, including threatened birds and bats, for years to come, says Charlie Russell, University of East Anglia researcher who focuses on wars' impact on migratory birds. 'The materials used make them difficult to identify and unlikely to naturally degrade, and they already cover vast swathes of important habitats. Removing them will be difficult but integral to long-term conservation efforts post-conflict.' The risks go beyond wildlife. They're also a danger to vehicles, affecting everything from agricultural machinery to fire trucks fighting forest fires. Additionally, they will complicate future de-mining operations, as they can get tangled in the heavy machinery used to clear minefields. Pollution begets more pollution Beyond the direct and immediate issues caused by endless miles of cabling, they will cause even more problems over time as they slowly degrade. They will release contaminants, Moreland says. Their PMMA core (PolymethylMethacrylate) core can generate microplastics and nanoplastics. These tiny particles can inhibit agricultural crop growth, which is a major problem for a country that is one of the main global producers and exporters of corn and wheat. The plastic will inexorably get into the food chain and reach humans, accumulating in different parts of the body, especially on infants. Burning the wires first isn't a solution, as the cables will release toxic gases like nitric oxide. Their outer coating belongs to the PFAS family, the so-called 'forever chemicals' due to their extreme environmental persistence. 'Along with munitions and firefighting foams, this fiber constitutes another military source of PFAS,' which contaminates soils and waters, Moreland notes. For the Ukrainians, the only silver lining to these noxious cables is that they can be used to trace their pilots: The fiber-optic becomes visible when illuminated by low-angled sunlight, creating clear vectors pointing back to enemy positions. So far, this reportedly led to the elimination of a five-person Russian drone team. But of course, the same can be said about the Ukrainian positions. It's never-ending cycle of destruction that will not stop. It's, in fact, accelerating. 'We are developing a technology that accurately and flawlessly destroys the enemy,' Fedorov says. Ukraine has now codified and approved about 40 samples of unmanned aircraft systems using fiber-optic control channels since the beginning of 2025, while production capacity keeps ramping up. It's also likely that Ukraine companies will start sharing their extensive expertise with the rest of European countries, which are now quickly rearming to face the imperialist thirst of Vladimir Putin after the United States turned its back on them. Other countries will follow, Moreland points out: China is already testing this technology. The success of fiber-optic drones in Ukraine virtually guarantees their proliferation to other conflicts worldwide. Every successful mission adds to the accumulating miles of fiber-optic cable abandoned on the ground. As production scales from thousands to potentially tens of thousands of drones per month, and as ranges extend from 25 to 40+ miles, the plastic spider web grows ever denser. This new type of war pollution—a plastic legacy designed to last centuries—continues expanding with each technological breakthrough. Right now, the solution to this unexpected environmental catastrophe remains as elusive as intercepting the drones themselves, while the invisible threads of modern warfare continue spinning their deadly, permanent web across the battlefields of the future.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Kyiv Pride drone charity event takes place, faces counterprotest
A charity event for Kyiv Pride took place on June 7 outside the Foreign Ministry building and was met with a nearby counterprotest. The event collected donations, with proceeds going toward FPV drones for Ukraine's Armed Forces provided by the Serhiy Sternenko Foundation. On April 19, a clash broke out between police and far-right protesters outside the Zhovten cinema in Kyiv, where the Sunny Bunny LGBTQ+ film festival took place. "This is a cultural and educational charity event. Today we will have several educational lectures, during which we will collect money for drones," Kyiv Pride organizers told local media. Counterprotesters stood nearby, chanting anti-LGBTQ+ slogans as the Kyiv Pride charity event took place outside the Foreign Ministry building. Kyiv Pride's previously planned event was cancelled amid police pressure on the National Expo Center of Ukraine (VDNG), the event organizers said. "This year, the police did everything they could to cancel our event. They even intimidated the management of VDNG — the National Expo Center of Ukraine... Unfortunately, under such pressure, VDNG made the decision to cancel our event," Kyiv Pride said in a post to Facebook on June 6. Public support for LGBTQ+ rights in Ukraine has grown in recent years, but the community continues to face frequent threats and violence, particularly from far-right groups. Events such as Pride marches and queer cultural festivals are often targeted by the far right. A 2023 poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology found that over 70% of Ukrainians believe LGBTQ+ people should have the same rights as others. Kyiv Pride held a march in June 2024 for the first time since Russia began its full-scale war against Ukraine in February 2022. Read also: Wondering where to start with Dostoevsky? Try his Ukrainian contemporaries instead We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Daily Mail
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Amazing new footage from Ukraine's daring Operation Spiderweb shows drone's whole flight across flaming Russian airbase before it smashes into one of Putin's nuclear bombers
The Ukrainian military has released new footage of its devastating drone attack that left dozens of Vladimir Putin 's irreplaceable nuclear bombers up in flames. Ukraine's most daring attack of the war to date, dubbed Operation Spiderweb, saw more than 100 first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones smuggled into Russia in wooden containers disguised as modular homes. They were loaded onto civilian trucks and driven behind enemy lines by Russian lorry drivers seemingly unaware of what they were carrying. The vehicles were parked within range of five airfields stretching from northern Russia down to Siberia, at which point the hidden roofs of the wooden cabins were opened remotely and the FPV drones took to the skies. What happened next served as a devastating blow to Putin's forces, as 41 of his prized aircraft - worth some £1.5billion - were decimated in just a matter of minutes. Footage shared by the Ukrainian military earlier today shows the exact moment one kamikaze drone dramatically burst out of its wooden crate and sped across the Russian countryside towards an airbase. As it reaches it target, huge plumes of smoke can be seen rising from several nuclear bombers already alight, with one jet engulfed by a devastating fireball. Amid the destruction, the drone spots one jet still in tact, a TU-22 nuclear bomber, and immediately races towards it before inevitably self destructing. The devastating strikes took place on Sunday, with dramatic videos posted by pro-Kremlin military bloggers showing flames engulfing aircraft at multiple locations, including one deep inside Siberia. At least four more Russian strategic airbases were struck: Olenya in the Arctic region of Murmansk; Dyagilevo in western Russia; Ivanovo, northeast of Moscow; and Podmoskovye in Moscow. Sources inside Ukraine's SBU security service claimed the operation crippled 34 per cent of Russia's long-range strategic bombers often used to launch cruise missiles into Ukraine. In a statement, the SBU said at least 41 long-range bombers had been damaged or destroyed. These, they say, include the nuclear capable Tu-95 and Tu-22M as well as the surveillance A-50 'Mainstay' plane, worth an estimated £250,000,000 that is used as a radar and command centre, of which Russia is only believed to have around ten in operation. 'Mainstays' are critical to coordinating Russian fighter jets and air defences, meaning that this will have severely hampered Putin's war effort. Moscow has long stopped producing any of these aircraft meaning, if confirmed, these assets could not be replaced. There are only around 120 Tu-95s and Tu-22Ms in operation and they are vital for Putin's nightly bombing raids on Ukraine. They had been moved to bases thousands of miles away from Ukraine, out of reach of Western-donated Storm Shadows and ATACMS which have a range of up to 185 miles. As it reaches it target, huge plumes of smoke can be seen rising from several nuclear bombers already, with one jet engulfed by a devastating fireball In images released by the Ukrainian secret services, the wooden containers are seen packed with 117 FPV kamikaze drones – which allow pilots to control them remotely through a live feed. Dozens of black drones are lined side-by-side in the mobile wooden cabins. The roofs had hidden compartments into which the small flying weapons were stashed. With the help of front-positioned cameras, the missile-loaded drones headed straight for Russia's highly expensive bomber planes. Amid the drone blasts, one Russian man recalled to Mash Telegram channel throwing stones into the backs of the trucks in an attempt to stop the drones from taking off. Footage captured the moment dozens of other Russian locals launched rocks towards the trucks with some climbing on top of the vehicles to get a better shot. A video surfaced showing one of the trucks used to launch the Ukrainian (FPV) drones against Russian airbases, moments before it self-destructed. The footage captures a Russian man entering the cargo truck, unaware of the built-in self-destruction mechanism, which ignites seconds later, resulting in a massive explosion. The truck's self-destruct system activates to ensure that no evidence or technology can be recovered by Russian forces. This method prevents reverse engineering and eliminates any traceable Ukrainian assets left behind. The trucks are all linked to a mysterious man named Artem, 37, believed to be Ukrainian, and had reportedly been loaded in Chelyabinsk. All drivers reported receiving cryptic phone calls with instructions on exactly where to stop just hours before the drone launches. The trucks involved were seen in clips shared on social media with smoke billowing from the roofs as slabs of the wooden crates lay on the side of the road. In drone footage, several Russian planes were seen erupting in a blaze as they soared over the Russian aircrafts. As they continued their journey, the drones blasted the planes stationed ahead, sending them into a ball of fire. Separate images revealed the destruction as plumes of black clouds billowed into the sky behind buildings as the attack was carried out. Footage appeared to show black smoke at the scene on the Kola Peninsula following explosions at the secret base. According to Baza, Russian officials have launched a terrorism investigation and are now hunting Artem, who is believed to have fled. Putin has stayed out of sight since the attacks but an insider has warned: 'He will hit back at Ukraine, but also avenge his underlings who allowed this humiliation to happen'. Meanwhile, the SBU says all Ukrainian personnel involved in preparing and guiding the mission are already safely back in Ukraine, dismissing Moscow's response as a 'another staged performance for the domestic audience'. In a statement, President Zelensky hailed the 'perfectly prepared' operation, which he claimed was run out of a building located near an office of the Federal Security Service, Russia's principle security service. The sleeping FSB security service - headed by close ally Alexander Bortnikov, 73 - now faces blame over Ukraine using a warehouse next door to an intelligence HQ in Chelyabinsk to prepare the drone strikes on his airbases. Operation Spiderweb was 18 months in the making and under the control of Vasyl Malyuk, the head of the Ukrainian security service, the SBU. Zelensky also noted its symbolic timing as the operation came exactly 29 years after Ukraine handed over its own strategic bombers to Russia as part of the ill-fated Budapest Memorandum, under which Moscow promised never to attack its neighbour. 'We can say with confidence that this is an absolutely unique operation,' he said in statement on social media, revealing that 117 drones were used to target bombers 'used to fire at our cities.' 'What's most interesting, is that the 'office' of our operation on Russian territory was located directly next to FSB headquarters in one of their regions,' he added. 'In total, 117 drones were used in the operation, with a corresponding number of drone operators involved, and 34 per cent of the strategic cruise missile carriers stationed at air bases were hit. We will continue this work.' He assessed that the attack on Putin's irreplaceable bombers 'will undoubtedly be in [the] history books'. Military blogger Roman Alekhin said the incident will go down as 'Russia's Pearl Harbour' - a reference to the Japanese attack against the US in 1941 that prompted Washington to enter the Second World War. Pro-Russian Telegram channel Fighterbomb, believed to be run by Capt. Ilya Tumanov of the Russian Army, acknowledged that Sunday would 'later be called a black day for Russian long-range aviation,' adding: 'And the day is not over yet.' Former RAF pilot and military analyst Mikey Kay told the BBC: 'The Russians would never have expected something like this. I mean, it's genius, if you think about just the devastating effect that it's had on strategic assets of Putin.' Philip O'Brien, professor of strategic studies at St Andrews University, said the raid was 'the most remarkable and successful operation of the war.'
Daily Mail
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Kyiv's strategic plot leads to destruction of Russia's bomber aircraft
The attack was carried out exactly 29 years to the day after Ukraine handed over dozens of the same strategic bombers to Russia, along with up to 2,000 strategic nuclear warheads and 176 ICBMs in exchange for a promise not to be attacked, under the Budapest Memorandum. In their most daring attack of the war to date, Ukrainian special forces first smuggled 117 first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones – which allow pilots to control them remotely through a live feed – into Russia. Then came mobile wooden cabins, whose roofs had hidden compartments into which the small flying weapons were stashed. They were loaded on to civilian trucks heading into enemy territory, their hired local drivers seemingly unaware of what they were carrying. Finally, yesterday afternoon, with all the lorries within range of five airfields stretching from northern Russia down to Siberia – a safe 2,500 miles from Ukraine – they struck. The roofs of the wooden cabins were opened remotely and the FPV drones took to the skies. With the help of front-positioned cameras, the missile-loaded drones headed straight for Russia's highly expensive bomber planes. Footage showed decimated enemy planes in flames on the runway and last night Ukrainian security sources claimed to have taken out 41 aircraft worth some £1.5billion. These, they say, include the nuclear capable Tu-95 and Tu-22M as well as the surveillance A-50 'Mainstay' plane, worth an estimated £250,000 that is used as a radar and command centre, of which Russia is only believed to have around ten in operation. 'Mainstays' are critical to coordinating Russian fighter jets and air defences, meaning that this will have severely hampered Putin's war effort. Moscow has long stopped producing any of these aircraft meaning, if confirmed, these assets could not be replaced. There are only around 120 Tu-95s and Tu-22Ms in operation and they are vital for Putin 's nightly bombing raids on Ukraine. They had been moved to bases thousands of miles away from Ukraine, out of reach of Western-donated Storm Shadows and ATACMS which have a range of up to 185 miles. The FPVs, which can reach just 12 miles, would have been the last thing on Russian minds. Mr Zelensky last night claimed that the operation took out a third of Russia's strategic bombers and had been conducted under the noses of its secret service. He said: 'What's most interesting, is that the 'office' of our operation on Russian territory was located directly next to FSB headquarters in one of their regions. In total, 117 drones were used in the operation, with a corresponding number of drone operators involved, and 34 per cent of the strategic cruise missile carriers stationed at air bases were hit. We will continue this work.' Military blogger Roman Alekhin said the incident will go down as 'Russia's Pearl Harbour' - a reference to the Japanese attack against the US in 1941 that prompted Washington to enter the Second World War. But experts also drew comparisons to the 1942 SAS raid on the Sidi Haneish airfield in Egypy, when elite British commandos put 40 Luftwaffe aircraft out of action using jeeps mounted with machine guns. While the attack wasn't a pivotal moment in the Desert War, it massively boosted British morale and disrupted Axis logistics in North Africa. It was also one of the pivotal events that helped forge the legendary status of the SAS. Former RAF pilot and military analyst Mikey Kay told the BBC : 'The Russians would never have expected something like this. I mean, it's genius, if you think about just the devastating effect that it's had on strategic assets of Putin.' Philip O'Brien, professor of strategic studies at St Andrews University, said the raid was 'the most remarkable and successful operation of the war.' He told The Times: 'This is a big blow to Russian strategic air power, which is hard to overestimate. We do not know what the Russian reaction will be, however we can assume it will be violent.' A Telegram channel called Fighterbomber, widely believed to be run by Captain Ilya Tumanov of the Russian Army, wrote of the attack: 'Today will later be called a black day for Russian long-range aviation. And the day is not over yet.' Mr Zelensky, who is said to have overseen the operation over the last year and a half, celebrated the strike on social media last night. The Ukrainian president wrote: 'A result achieved solely by Ukraine. One year, six months, and nine days from the start of planning to effective execution. Our most long-range operation.' He added: 'These are Ukrainian actions that will undoubtedly be in [the] history books.' A delegation from Kyiv is due to meet counterparts from Moscow for a second round of peace talks in Istanbul today but it was not clear last night if it would still go ahead. Ukraine has said that its proposals will include a full 30-day ceasefire followed by the return of all prisoners held by each side. Negotiators also want some 20,000 Ukrainian children who were kidnapped by Russia to be repatriated before Mr Zelensky and Putin meet. Russia has so far refused to agree to a 30-day pause in fighting and overnight on Saturday launched its largest strike of the war so far with 472 drones and seven missiles. Kyiv's Operation Spider's Web struck Belaya air base in the Irkutsk region of Siberia; Dyagilevo air base in Ryazan, western Russia; Olenya air base in Murmansk, northern Russia; and Ivanovo air base in Ivanovo, central Russia. The fifth air base was yet to be identified last night. The operation, led by Mr Zelensky and security service boss Lieutenant General Vasyl Malyuk, marks the first time Ukraine has struck targets inside Siberia. Kyiv put the cost of the damage at more than £1.5billion because each A-50 aircraft is valued at around £260million. Last night Russia was arresting the truck drivers, but hours earlier Ukraine had reported that its agents were safely home. FPV drones usually need a pilot within six miles which suggests Ukrainians may have been close to the airfields during the strikes. Hours before the drone strikes a wave of bomb attacks targeted Russian bridges and railway lines in regions bordering Ukraine. Russia declared them 'acts of terrorism' with seven killed and dozens injured when a passenger train travelling to Moscow was derailed by a collapsed bridge in Bryansk on Saturday night. Hours later, in neighbouring Kursk where Ukraine launched its major cross-border incursion last August, a freight train was derailed by another fallen bridge. A Russian missile strike on a Ukrainian army training area killed at least 12 soldiers yesterday and wounded more than 60 others, the Ukrainian army said. Kyiv has carried out a series of daring attacks on Russia since the start of the war, with one of first being the counter-offensive which liberated the city of Kherson in November 2022. Ukrainian armed forces also took swathes of territory in Kursk last August in what was the first occupation of Russian land since the Second World War . Putin only succeeded in pushing Ukraine out of the territory in March.
Daily Mail
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
How Zelensky's men plotted 'Op Spider's Web' that blew $7bn hole in Putin's 'irreplaceable' nuke bomber fleet: Experts praise 'genius' attack but warn of 'violent' response from humiliated Kremlin
It was a top-secret operation some 18 months in the planning. Codenamed 'Spider's Web', it was executed with devastating effect yesterday afternoon and was as audacious as it was genius. And as Volodymyr Zelensky said, just one day before Ukrainian and Russian delegates were set to meet for negotiations in Turkey's capital Istanbul, the attack on Vladimir Putin's irreplaceable nuclear bombers 'will undoubtedly be in [the] history books'. The attack on the Russian bomber fleet came exactly 29 years to the day after Ukraine handed over dozens of the same strategic bombers to Russia, along with up to 2,000 strategic nuclear warheads and 176 ICBMs in exchange for a promise not to be attacked, under the Budapest Memorandum. First Ukrainian special forces smuggled dozens of first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones – which allow pilots to control them remotely through a live feed – into Russia. Then came mobile wooden cabins, whose roofs had hidden compartments into which the small flying weapons were stashed. They were loaded on to civilian trucks heading into enemy territory, their hired local drivers seemingly unaware of what they were carrying. Finally, yesterday afternoon, with all the lorries within range of five airfields stretching from northern Russia down to Siberia – a safe 2,500 miles from Ukraine – they struck. The roofs of the wooden cabins were opened remotely and the FPV drones took to the skies. With the help of front-positioned cameras, the missile-loaded drones headed straight for Russia's highly expensive bomber planes. Footage showed decimated enemy planes in flames on the runway and last night Ukrainian security sources claimed to have taken out 41 aircraft worth some £1.5billion. These, they say, include the nuclear capable Tu-95 and Tu-22M as well as the surveillance A-50 'Mainstay' plane, worth an estimated £250,000 that is used as a radar and command centre, of which Russia is only believed to have around ten in operation. 'Mainstays' are critical to coordinating Russian fighter jets and air defences, meaning that this will have severely hampered Putin's war effort. Moscow has long stopped producing any of these aircraft meaning, if confirmed, these assets could not be replaced. There are only around 120 Tu-95s and Tu-22Ms in operation and they are vital for Vladimir Putin 's nightly bombing raids on Ukraine. They had been moved to bases thousands of miles away from Ukraine, out of reach of Western-donated Storm Shadows and ATACMS which have a range of up to 185 miles. The FPVs, which can reach just 12 miles, would have been the last thing on Russian minds. The attack drew comparisons to the 1942 SAS raid on the Sidi Haneish airfield in Egypy, when elite British commandos put 40 Luftwaffe aircraft out of action using jeeps mounted with machine guns. While the attack wasn't a pivotal moment in the Desert War, it massively boosted British morale and disrupted Axis logistics in North Africa. It was also one of the pivotal events that helped forge the legendary status of the SAS. Former RAF pilot and military analyst Mikey Kay told the BBC: 'The Russians would never have expected something like this. 'I mean, it's genius, if you think about just the devastating effect that it's had on strategic assets of Putin.' Philip O'Brien, professor of strategic studies at St Andrews University said the raid was 'the most remarkable and successful operation of the war.' He added: 'This is a big blow to Russian strategic air power, which is hard to overestimate. 'We do not know what the Russian reaction will be, however we can assume it will be violent.' A Telegram channel called Fighterbomber, widely believed to be run by Captain Ilya Tumanov of the Russian Army, wrote of the attack: 'Today will later be called a black day for Russian long-range aviation. And the day is not over yet.' Military blogger Roman Alekhin said the incident will go down as 'Russia's Pearl Harbour'. Mr Zelensky, who is said to have overseen the operation over the last year and a half, celebrated the strike on social media last night. The Ukrainian president wrote: 'A result achieved solely by Ukraine. One year, six months, and nine days from the start of planning to effective execution. Our most long-range operation.' He added: 'These are Ukrainian actions that will undoubtedly be in [the] history books.' A delegation from Kyiv is due to meet counterparts from Moscow for a second round of peace talks in Istanbul today but it was not clear last night if it would still go ahead. Ukraine has said that its proposals will include a full 30-day ceasefire followed by the return of all prisoners held by each side. Negotiators also want some 20,000 Ukrainian children who were kidnapped by Russia to be repatriated before Mr Zelensky and Putin meet. Russia has so far refused to agree to a 30-day pause in fighting and overnight on Saturday launched its largest strike of the war so far with 472 drones and seven missiles. Kyiv's Operation Spider's Web struck Belaya air base in the Irkutsk region of Siberia; Dyagilevo air base in Ryazan, western Russia; Olenya air base in Murmansk, northern Russia; and Ivanovo air base in Ivanovo, central Russia. The fifth air base was yet to be identified last night. The operation, led by Mr Zelensky and security service boss Lieutenant General Vasyl Malyuk, marks the first time Ukraine has struck targets inside Siberia. Kyiv put the cost of the damage at more than £1.5billion because each A-50 aircraft is valued at around £260million. Last night Russia was arresting the truck drivers, but hours earlier Ukraine had reported that its agents were safely home. FPV drones usually need a pilot within six miles which suggests Ukrainians may have been close to the airfields during the strikes. Hours before the drone strikes a wave of bomb attacks targeted Russian bridges and railway lines in regions bordering Ukraine. Russia declared them 'acts of terrorism' with seven killed and dozens injured when a passenger train travelling to Moscow was derailed by a collapsed bridge in Bryansk on Saturday night. Hours later, in neighbouring Kursk where Ukraine launched its major cross-border incursion last August, a freight train was derailed by another fallen bridge. A Russian missile strike on a Ukrainian army training area killed at least 12 soldiers yesterday and wounded more than 60 others, the Ukrainian army said. Kyiv has carried out a series of daring attacks on Russia since the start of the war, with one of first being the counter-offensive which liberated the city of Kherson in November 2022. Ukrainian armed forces also took swathes of territory in Kursk last August in what was the first occupation of Russian land since the Second World War.
