Ukraine attacked a Russian airbase more than 600 km from the border

The Russian military reported the downing of a Ukrainian drone approaching an airbase inside Russia, attacked for the second time this month, raising questions about the effectiveness of Russian air defenses if the drones they can fly as far in the country. The attacked base, where three technicians died according to official Russian information, is that of Engels, more than 600 km from the border with Ukraine. Heavy bombers fly out of it to launch cruise missiles on Ukrainian cities and power plants. Ukraine accused Russia of shelling its cities again in the last 24 hours.

The Russian Defense Ministry said three air force personnel had been killed in the attack but no planes had been damaged, denying reports on social media that several planes had been destroyed. Neither one thing nor the other can be ruled out at the moment.

The incident took place during the early hours of Monday at the Engels base, located in the Russian region of Saratov, on the banks of the Volga River, more than 600 kilometers east of the border with Ukraine. The base has between 60 and 70 strategic bomber aircraft of two types: the Tu-95MS Bear, an old propeller plane from the 1960s, and the faster, more modern Tu-160 Blackjack. Both capable of carrying nuclear bombs and nuclear as well as conventional cruise missiles. With conventional explosive cruise missiles they systematically attack the cities of Ukraine. The base is therefore not just a military objective, but an indisputably legitimate one.

Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat did not directly acknowledge his country's involvement in the incident, but said: “These are the consequences of Russian aggression. If the Russians thought that the war would not affect their rear, they were wrong. These kinds of things are happening more and more frequently and we hope this will be positive for Ukraine,” he added. The official asked to wait for the satellite images of the base to assess the real consequences of the explosion, which according to Russia occurred when the Ukrainian drone was shot down.

Ukraine does not claim responsibility for drone strikes in Russia and remains ambiguous about past attacks, including those against Russian bases earlier this month. This policy is to avoid as much as possible brutal retaliation from Russia, which often launches waves of missiles after a Ukrainian attack. On December 5, other actions with drones against the Engels base and the Dyagilevo base, in the Ryazan region, western Russia, caused the death of three soldiers and injured four others. These attacks sparked massive Russian bombing raids on Ukraine, hitting homes and killing civilians.

At least four civilians have been injured in Russian airstrikes on five regions in the southeast of the country in the last 24 hours, according to the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko. For weeks Russia has not dropped aerial bombs in the Dnipropetrovsk region, which borders the partially occupied southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhia, according to its governor, Valentyn Reznichenko. "This is the third quiet night in 5 1/2 months since the Russians started shelling the surroundings of the city of Nikopol," Reznichenko wrote. Nikopol is located across the Dnieper River and close to the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which has been occupied by Russian forces since the start of the invasion.

Ukrainian-controlled areas of the Kherson region were shelled 33 times in the last 24 hours, according to the Ukrainian governor of Kherson, Yaroslav Yanushevich. In the shelling of the city of Kherson on Saturday, at least 16 civilians were killed and 48 others injured. The sites attacked were strictly civilian: streets and apartment buildings.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Ukraine will do everything in its power to win the war in 2023, adding that diplomacy will play an important role. “Every war is concluded through diplomatic channels,'' he declared. "Every war ends as a result of actions taken on the battlefield and at the negotiating table." He added that the Ukrainian government would like to have a peace summit by the end of February. “The United Nations could be the ideal place to hold this summit, because it is not about doing a favor to a particular country,'' he said. "It's about getting everyone involved.'' Asked if Russia should be allowed to attend the summit, he said Russia would first have to be prosecuted for war crimes in an international court. He dismissed Vladimir Putin's statement on Sunday that Russia was ready for negotiations. "They regularly say they are ready to negotiate, which is false because everything they do on the battlefield proves otherwise," the Ukrainian minister said, referring to Russia's systematic bombardment of civilian targets.

The incident took place during the early hours of Monday at the Engels base, located in the Russian region of Saratov, on the banks of the Volga River, more than 600 kilometers east of the border with Ukraine.