Ukraine failed to destroy Russian planes in drone raid
None of the Russian aircraft targeted in Ukraine's recent drone attacks were destroyed, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has said. The aircraft sustained damage but will be repaired, he told TASS In an interview published on Wednesday.
Ukrainian drones struck several Russian airbases on Sunday, in a coordinated assault across five regions, from Murmansk in the Arctic to Irkutsk in Siberia.
Kiev has claimed that the strikes damaged or destroyed approximately 40 Russian military aircraft, including Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers. Moscow, however, has dismissed both the numbers and extent of damage.
'The equipment in question, as also stated by the Defense Ministry, was not destroyed, but damaged. It will be restored,' Ryabkov said, responding to a question about whether the strikes had affected strategic stability.
Kiev's claims about the results of the attack have been inconsistent, Ryabkov claimed. 'There is nothing even remotely close' to the damage levels quoted by Kiev, he said, urging reporters to rely only on information shared through the Russian Defense Ministry's official channels.
The official also stated that prior to the recent phone call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Moscow had raised concerns with Washington that US officials had not responded to the attack.
Trump had reportedly insisted to Putin that the US had no prior knowledge of Kiev's plans to strike Russian airfields, according to the Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov.
On Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also confirmed that Putin and had told Trump a Russian response to the strikes is inevitable and that it would be carried out at the discretion of the Russian military.
Putin has accused the 'illegitimate regime in Kiev' of carrying out terrorist attacks and 'gradually turning into a terrorist organization.'
Shortly after the Trump-Putin phone call on Wednesday, the US Embassy in Kiev issued a security alert, warning of a 'continued risk of significant air attacks.' The US State Department has advised Americans currently in Ukraine to identify shelter locations in advance and keep reserves of water, food, and medication.
Moscow has repeatedly condemned Ukraine's continued drone strikes and acts of sabotage on Russian territories, claiming that they undermine ongoing efforts to find a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.
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