Latest news with #TomBalmforth
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Analysis-Satellite imagery shows Ukraine attack destroyed and damaged Russian bombers
By Tom Balmforth and Milan Pavicic (Reuters) -Satellite imagery of a Russian air base taken shortly after Ukraine carried out a drone attack deep inside Russia over the weekend shows several strategic bombers were destroyed and badly damaged, according to three open source analysts. Ukraine targeted at least four air bases across Russia using 117 unmanned aerial vehicles launched from containers close to the targets. Drone footage of the operation verified by Reuters shows several aircraft were struck in at least two locations. Capella Space, a satellite company, supplied Reuters with an image of one of those airfields, located in the Siberian region of Irkutsk. The image was taken on June 2, the day after one of the most complex and effective operations launched by Ukraine in more than three years of war. Cloud cover can obscure conventional satellite pictures, but the data is from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites which direct energy beams at the Earth and detect echoes, making it possible to identify small topographical details. The image - more grainy than conventional high-resolution photographs and in black and white - appears to show the debris of several aircraft located along the runway of the Belaya military air base or parked in protective revetments nearby. "Based on the debris visible, comparison to recent satellite images and released drone footage from Telegram posted to Twitter, I can see the destruction of several aircraft," said John Ford, a research associate at the California-based James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. Ford said that SAR imagery provided to him by Reuters showed what appeared to be the remnants of two destroyed Tu-22 Backfires - long-range, supersonic strategic bombers that have been used to launch missile strikes against Ukraine. The SAR image, as well as drone footage of the strikes posted on social media, also indicated that four strategic heavy Tu-95 bombers had been destroyed or severely damaged, he added. Brady Africk, an open source intelligence analyst, agreed that the SAR imagery of Irkutsk air base showed several Tu-95s and Tu-22s had been destroyed and damaged, although more imagery was needed to properly assess the impact. "But it is clear that the attack on this airbase was very successful," he said. "The aircraft targeted in the attack were a mix of Tu-22 and Tu-95 bombers, both of which Russia has used to launch strikes against Ukraine." Africk added that Belaya air base is home to several flat decoy aircraft, which he said had apparently failed to mislead Ukrainian drones in this case. LARGE EXPLOSION Reuters has not yet obtained SAR imagery of the Olenya airfield, a base in Murmansk in Russia's far northwest that was also attacked. But drone video footage of Olenya base provided by Ukrainian authorities and verified by Reuters showed two burning bombers which appeared to be Tu-95s and a third, also a Tu-95, being hit by a large explosion. The Russian Defence Ministry said Ukraine had launched drone strikes targeting military airfields in Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Ryazan, and Amur regions. Air defences repelled the assaults in three regions, but not Murmansk and Irkutsk, it said, adding that in those places several aircraft caught fire. Ukraine's domestic security agency, the SBU, has claimed responsibility for the operation, called "Spider's Web", and said that in total 41 Russian warplanes were hit. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called the attack, which struck targets up to 4,300 km (2,670 miles) from the frontlines of the war, "absolutely brilliant". Andriy Kovalenko, an official on Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council, said that of more than 40 planes struck, 13 were destroyed. The Ukrainian military added 12 aircraft to its running tally of Russia's wartime military losses on Tuesday, without elaborating. The SBU said the damage caused by the operation amounted to $7 billion, and 34% of the strategic cruise missile carriers at Russia's main airfields were hit. Reuters could not independently verify the claims. Some experts said the operation would not be enough to stop Russia from launching missile attacks on Ukraine using strategic bombers, but it would be hard, if not impossible to replace the damaged planes because some of them are no longer in production. The attack was also likely to force Russia to reconfigure its air defences, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) research group. "The ... operation will force Russian officials to consider redistributing Russia's air defense systems to cover a much wider range of territory and possibly deploying mobile air defense groups that can more quickly react to possible similar Ukrainian drone strikes in the future," the ISW said. (Writing by Mike Collett-WhiteEditing by Frances Kerry)
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Russia hands Ukraine two proposed ceasefire options as both agree prisoner swaps
LATEST | Vladimir Soldatkin, Tom Balmforth and Huseyin Hayatsever ©Reuters Today at 12:58 Russian negotiators have handed Ukraine two proposed options for a ceasefire, Russian state media said on Monday. RIA news agency said the first would require Ukraine to commence a complete withdrawal of all its forces from four regions of the country that Russia has claimed as its own territory. Register for free to read this story Register and create a profile to get access to our free stories. You'll also unlock more free stories each week.
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Ukraine and Russia end latest round of peace talks after just over an hour
LATEST | Second round of direct talks held in TurkeyRussia and Ukraine stances still far apartBoth sides agree to new prisoner swapTalks come day after Ukrainian drones hit Russian bombers Vladimir Soldatkin, Tom Balmforth and Huseyin Hayatsever ©Reuters Today at 09:51 Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul ended barely an hour after they began on Monday, a day after a massive Ukrainian drone attack on Russia's nuclear-capable strategic bombers. The talks - the second such direct contacts between the sides since 2022 - had already begun nearly two hours later than scheduled with no explanation of the delay. Register for free to read this story Register and create a profile to get access to our free stories. You'll also unlock more free stories each week.
Daily Maverick
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
To attack Russian air bases, Ukrainian spies hid drones in wooden sheds
Ukraine's SBU domestic intelligence says it carried out 'operation Spider's Web' Drones in sheds were placed on trucks and driven near Russian bases SBU says 34% of cruise missile carriers put out of action Video shows Russian strategic bombers on fire By Tom Balmforth and Max Hunder Ukraine's domestic security agency, the SBU, acknowledged that it carried out the attacks and said they caused considerable damage. The sheds were loaded onto trucks that were driven to the perimeter of the air bases. The roof panels of the sheds were lifted off by a remotely-activated mechanism, allowing the drones to fly out and begin their attack, the official said. The security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said strikes were conducted on Sunday on four air bases, and that 41 Russian warplanes were hit. An SBU statement posted on the Telegram messaging app estimated the damage caused by the assaults at $7 billion. 'Thirty-four percent of strategic cruise missile carriers at the main airfields of the Russian Federation were hit,' the SBU said on Telegram. Unverified video and pictures posted on Russian social media showed Russian strategic bombers on fire at the Belaya air base in the Irkutsk region of Siberia. Igor Kobzev, the regional governor, said there had been a drone attack on a military unit near the village of Sredny, which is near the Belaya base, though he did not specify what the target was. He said the drones had been launched from a truck. The Irkutsk region attack was the first time a drone assault had been mounted by Ukraine so far from the front lines, which are more than 4,300 km (2,670 miles) away. That is beyond the range of the long-range strike drones or ballistic missiles Ukraine has in its arsenal, so required a special scheme to get the drones close enough to their target. Photographs shared with Reuters by the Ukrainian security official showed dozens of short-range quadrocopter drones piled up in an industrial facility. The official said these were the same devices used in the attack. Other images shared by the official showed the wooden sheds with their metal roofing panels removed, and the drones sitting in the cavities between roof beams. Separate video posted on Russian Telegram channels, which has not been verified by Reuters, appeared to show matching sheds on the back of a truck. The roof panels can be seen lying on the ground next to the truck, and the video footage shows at least two drones rising out of the top of the sheds and flying off. The Russian online media outlet that posted the video, Baza, said in a caption that it was filmed in the district near the Belaya air base. The Irkutsk region air base hosts Tupolev Tu-22M supersonic long-range strategic bombers, a type of aircraft that has been used to launch missiles against targets in Ukraine. The operation was code-named 'Spider's Web', according to the Ukrainian security official, and was personally overseen by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Vasyl Maliuk, head of the SBU domestic intelligence agency. If confirmed, the strikes would be the most damaging Ukrainian drone attack of the war, and would be a significant setback for Moscow. The source shared video footage shot from a drone, saying it showed one of the strikes. The images showed several large aircraft, some of which appeared to be Tu-95 strategic bombers, on fire.
The Star
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
Ukraine attacks Russian nuclear-capable bombers in Siberia
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Ukraine attacked Russian nuclear-capable long-range bombers at a military base in Siberia on Sunday, the first such attack so far from the front lines more than 4,300 km (2,670 miles) away, according to pro-Russian bloggers. Unverified video and pictures posted on social media showed Russian strategic bombers - whose purpose is to drop nuclear bombs on distance targets - on fire at the Belaya air base north of Irkutsk. Reuters was unable to immediately verify the footage but in Kyiv, a Ukrainian intelligence official told Reuters that Ukraine's domestic security agency, the SBU, conducted a large drone attack on over 40 Russian military aircraft. The Ukrainian source, speaking on condition of anonymity to Reuters in Kyiv, said the struck aircraft included Tu-95 and Tu-22 strategic bombers, which Russia uses to fire long-range missiles at Ukraine. Igor Kobzev, the governor of Irkutsk, said that there had been a drone attack on a military unit near the village of Sredny in the Usolsky district, but did not mention strategic aviation. In video that he posted on Telegram, drones could be heard flying overhead and a giant plume of smoke rising into the sky. He said, though, that it was the first such attack in that part of Siberia - and added that the number of drones in the attack was unclear. The drones, he said, had been launched from a truck. The Belaya, or Sredny, airbase is located near the village of Sredny, and hosts Tupolev Tu-22M supersonic long-range strategic bomber, according to open source details about Russia's armed forces. There was also a Ukrainian drone attack in the Murmansk region of northern Russia, according to local officials. The Olenya airbase, which also hosts strategic aviation, is located in the Murmansk region, according to open source data. (Reporting by Reuters in Moscow and Tom Balmforth in Kyiv; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
