Latest news with #TulaRegion
Russia Today
5 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Russia shoots down over 150 Ukrainian kamikaze drones in a day
Russian air defense forces have shot down over 150 long-range Ukrainian drones in the past 24 hours, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said Monday. In a summary of recent anti-drone operations released in the morning, the ministry reported that 96 drones had been intercepted since 8pm Sunday (17:00 GMT). It added that a total of 148 drones were downed in the 22-hour span between 10am Sunday and 8am Monday. The ministry later stated that approximately five more drones were shot down around 8am local time on Monday. Kiev has escalated efforts to inflict damage deep inside Russia, shifting from nighttime raids to constant waves of kamikaze drones. One drone reportedly struck the dome of a cathedral in Russia's Tula Region on Sunday, causing a fire, according to footage and local authorities. Recent interceptions were filmed by witnesses in multiple parts of Russia. A video from Tatarstan purports to show the air defenses in action near the city of Yelabuga, a significant industrial center. Another reportedly shows people in Tula reacting to an engagement of Ukrainian drones. There was similar action over Ramenskoye, a city southeast of Moscow with more than 110,000 residents. The Defense Ministry said it stopped six drones approaching the Russian capital overnight. Russia last week launched a series of long-range strikes on Ukraine, including one on a plant in Kiev that the Russian Defense Ministry stated was used to produce fixed-wing drones. US President Donald Trump, who seeks to broker a peace deal in the conflict, criticized both sides in a social media post on Sunday. He accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of 'shooting rockets into Kiev' without justification and said rhetoric from Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky was counterproductive, claiming 'everything out of his mouth causes problems.' Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has suggested that Kiev's change in tactics was aimed at undermining direct peace talks with Moscow, which Ukraine agreed to resume earlier this month under pressure from Washington. Lavrov said the sabotage effort was encouraged by 'the UK, France, Germany, and the EU leadership.' Following a recent phone call with Putin, Trump reportedly told NATO allies and Zelensky that he would not support additional sanctions on Russia. That decision, according to The Guardian, left European leaders 'ranging from despondent to apoplectic.'
Russia Today
6 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Ukrainian attack destroys Russian church dome (VIDEO)
A Ukrainian drone strike destroyed the dome of a cathedral in Tula Region, Russia in a large-scale overnight UAV raid on the country on Saturday, the regional governor has said. The drone struck St. Nicholas Cathedral in the village of Yepifan, setting the main spire on fire and completely burning it, Dmitry Milyaev said in a statement on Telegram Sunday morning. The blast also damaged windows of nearby homes, he added. 'The fire has been localized,' Milyaev wrote, adding that there were no casualties. Footage circulating on social media shows the Orthodox cathedral's dome engulfed in flames, with burning debris tumbling onto the roofs below. The drone raid damaged civilian homes and outbuildings in other parts of Tula Region, Milyaev said. Russian air defenses shot down 16 UAVs over the region during the assault, according to the country's military. In total, 110 drones were intercepted across Russian airspace overnight, the Defense Ministry said in a statement on Sunday. Ukraine has escalated its drone strikes on civilian targets in Russia in recent days. Nearly 900 Ukrainian drones have been intercepted over Russian regions since Tuesday, according to data from the Russian Defense Ministry. The Russian Foreign Ministry has described the surge in UAV 'terrorist attacks' on non-military targets as a deliberate attempt by Ukraine's 'party of war' to sabotage the recently renewed direct peace negotiations between Moscow and Kiev. Ukraine's Western backers, 'led by the UK, France, Germany, and the EU leadership,' are facilitating the attacks by supporting 'Ukrainian Nazis,' Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday. Direct peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia resumed in Türkiye earlier this month, three years after Kiev unilaterally withdrew from the previous round of talks in Istanbul in 2022. As a result, both sides agreed to draft memorandums outlining their proposals for a peace settlement, and agreed on a landmark 1,000 for 1,000 prisoner exchange, which concluded on Sunday.
