Smoke rises above the world following what native authorities known as a drone assault on a navy unit within the Sredny settlement, in the midst of Russia-Ukraine battle within the Usolsky district of the Irkutsk area, Russia, on this nonetheless picture from a video revealed June 1, 2025.
Governor Of Irkutsk Area | Through Reuters
A Ukrainian drone assault has destroyed greater than 40 Russian planes deep in Russia’s territory, Ukraine’s Safety Service mentioned on Sunday, whereas Moscow pounded Ukraine with missiles and drones simply hours earlier than a brand new spherical of direct peace talks in Istanbul.
A navy official, who spoke with the Related Press on situation of anonymity to reveal operational particulars, mentioned the far-reaching assault took greater than a yr and a half to execute and was personally supervised by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
In his night handle, Zelenskyy mentioned that 117 drones had been used within the operation. He claimed the operation had been headquartered out of an workplace subsequent to the native FSB headquarters. The FSB is the Russian intelligence and safety service.
The navy supply mentioned it was an “extraordinarily complicated” operation, involving the smuggling of first-person view, or FPV, drones to Russia, the place they had been then positioned in cellular picket homes.
“Later, drones had been hidden underneath the roofs of those homes whereas already positioned on vehicles. On the proper second, the roofs of the homes had been remotely opened, and the drones flew to hit Russian bombers,” the supply mentioned.
Social media footage shared by Russian media appeared to indicate the drones rising from inside containers whereas different panels lay discarded on the street. One clip appeared to indicate males climbing onto a truck in an try to halt the drones.
Lengthy-range bombers focused
The drones hit 41 planes stationed at navy airfields on Sunday afternoon, together with A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22M plane, the official mentioned. Moscow has beforehand used Tupolev Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers to launch missiles at Ukraine, whereas A-50s are used to coordinate targets and detect air defenses and guided missiles.
The Safety Service of Ukraine mentioned that the operation, which it codenamed “Internet,” had destroyed 34% of Russia’s fleet of air missile carriers with damages estimated at $7 billion. The declare couldn’t be independently verified.
Russia’s Protection Ministry in a press release confirmed the assaults, which broken plane and sparked fires on air bases within the Irkutsk area, greater than 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) from Ukraine, in addition to the Murmansk area within the north, it mentioned. Strikes had been additionally repelled within the Amur area in Russia’s Far East and within the western areas of Ivanovo and Ryazan, the ministry mentioned.
Additionally on Sunday, Russia’s high investigative physique mentioned that explosions had triggered two bridges to break down and derailed two trains in western Russia in a single day, killing seven in one of many incidents and injuring dozens extra. Russian officers, nevertheless, didn’t say what had triggered the blasts and the phrase “explosions” was later faraway from an Investigative Committee press launch.
Assault forward of talks
The drone assault got here the identical day as Zelenskyy mentioned Ukraine will ship a delegation to Istanbul for a brand new spherical of direct peace talks with Russia on Monday.
In a press release on Telegram, Zelenskyy mentioned that Protection Minister Rustem Umerov will lead the Ukrainian delegation. “We’re doing all the pieces to guard our independence, our state and our individuals,” Zelenskyy mentioned.
Ukrainian officers had beforehand known as on the Kremlin to supply a promised memorandum setting out its place on ending the battle earlier than the assembly takes place. Moscow had mentioned it might share its memorandum in the course of the talks.
Russian strike hits a military unit
Russia on Sunday launched the largest variety of drones — 472 — on Ukraine because the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukraine’s air drive mentioned.
Russian forces additionally launched seven missiles alongside the barrage of drones, mentioned Yuriy Ignat, head of communications for the air drive. Earlier Sunday, Ukraine’s military mentioned not less than 12 Ukrainian service members had been killed and greater than 60 had been injured in a Russian missile strike on a military coaching unit.
Ukrainian military commander Mykhailo Drapatyi later Sunday submitted his resignation following the assault. He was a revered commander whose management noticed Ukraine regain land on the jap entrance for the primary time since Kyiv’s 2022 counteroffensive.
The coaching unit was situated to the rear of the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) lively entrance line, the place Russian reconnaissance and strike drones are in a position to strike. Ukraine’s forces lack troops and take additional precautions to keep away from mass gatherings because the skies throughout the entrance line are saturated with Russian drones on the lookout for targets.
