KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Accusations from Russian authorities point towards Ukraine for launching a drone attack on Moscow early Monday. One of the aircraft reportedly fell near the Defense Ministry’s main headquarters, while in response, the Russian military carried out additional strikes on port infrastructure in southern Ukraine.
According to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, there were no casualties resulting from the drone strikes on two nonresidential buildings in the city. However, in a separate incident, a Ukrainian drone allegedly targeted an ammunition depot in Russian-annexed Crimea, leading to a temporary halt in traffic on a major highway.
In Moscow, reports from Russian media indicate that one of the drones crashed on the Komsomolsky highway near the city center. The impact caused damage to shop windows and the roof of a nearby house, which was just over 200 yards away from the towering riverside Defense Ministry building. The significance of this location lies in the presence of Pantsyr air defense systems positioned on the ministry’s roof.
It remained unclear whether the drone that hit Moscow was intentionally targeting the Defense Ministry’s headquarters, situated approximately 2.7 kilometers (1.7 miles) away from the Kremlin, or if it was directed towards another location in central Moscow.
Additionally, a separate drone strike caused more visible damage as it hit an office building in southern Moscow, resulting in severe damage to several upper floors. Emergency workers were dispatched to assess the extent of the damage, and traffic on affected sections of highways was brought to a halt.
As of the report, Ukrainian authorities had not claimed responsibility for the drone attack, which marked the second such incident in the Russian capital within the same month.
In the previous drone attack on July 4, the Russian military disclosed that four out of five drones were intercepted and shot down by air defense systems on the outskirts of Moscow. The remaining drone was neutralized through electronic warfare measures and forced to land. Following that incident, authorities temporarily restricted flights at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport and rerouted flights to two other airports in the city.
On Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged a notable increase in attempts to attack Russian regions with drones. He stated that intensive 24-hour efforts are underway to address the situation, though he did not provide specific details about any enhancements made to Russia’s air defense systems in response to the heightened attacks.
In the most recent incident, Russian authorities reported that another Ukrainian drone attack struck an ammunition depot in northern Crimea, leading to a temporary halt in traffic on a major highway and railway. Crimea, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014, experienced the effects of the attack, but railway traffic was restored a few hours later.
Sergei Aksyonov, the head of Crimea appointed by Moscow, revealed that authorities ordered the evacuation of several villages within a three-mile radius of the hit ammunition depot. He claimed that the military managed to shoot down or jam 11 of the attacking drones, while the Defense Ministry later stated that 11 out of 17 attacking drones were jammed and crashed into the Black Sea, and an additional three were shot down.
Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s digital transformation minister, made observations on his messaging app channel, interpreting the drone attacks on Moscow and Crimea as signs that Russia’s electronic warfare capabilities and air defenses are becoming less effective in protecting their airspace against such threats. He warned that more attacks may be forthcoming.
According to a report from Ukrainska Pravda, the drone attack on Moscow was revealed to be a special operation conducted by Ukrainian military intelligence.
Prior to this incident, on Saturday, another drone attack targeted Crimea, hitting an ammunition depot and causing massive black smoke to rise into the sky. The attack also led to the evacuation of residents from the affected area.
In response, Russian forces carried out strikes on port infrastructure located on the Danube River in southern Ukraine. Exploding drones were used in this attack, resulting in seven people being wounded. Additionally, a grain hangar and storage for other cargo were destroyed. The Ukrainian military intervened and reported successfully downing three of the attacking drones in their defense.
On Monday, during a drone attack at a Ukrainian artillery position near Bakhmut, a video journalist from Agence France-Presse (AFP) was wounded. Dylan Collins, a 35-year-old U.S. citizen based in Beirut, Lebanon, was working on assignment in Ukraine when the incident occurred. He suffered multiple shrapnel injuries as a result of the attack.
Collins was promptly evacuated to a nearby hospital, where he is currently receiving medical treatment. The agency confirmed that he is conscious and able to communicate with his colleagues. Fortunately, doctors have assessed his condition as not life-threatening, providing some relief amid the concerning incident.
The drone attack that wounded Dylan Collins, an AFP video journalist, near Bakhmut comes in the wake of a series of attacks on critical port infrastructure in southern Ukraine. The incident on Ukraine’s side of the Danube river was “very close to Romania,” according to Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, who strongly condemned the attack. He expressed concerns about the serious risks posed to security in the Black Sea region.
These strikes on the port infrastructure have been escalating in recent times, with the Kremlin stating that they are retaliatory measures in response to a Ukrainian strike on the crucial Kerch Bridge, which links Russia with Crimea.
Notably, Russia canceled a significant grain deal a week before, and in the aftermath, they have launched repeated attacks on Odesa, a key hub for exporting grain. As a result, wheat prices surged more than 8.5% following the attack on the Danube. The river serves as a crucial route for Ukraine’s grain exports during this period of ongoing conflict, leading to market anxiety about Moscow potentially expanding its targeting of Ukrainian grain shipments.
The attack also raises questions about the availability of a crucial alternate route for grain shipments, as Russia exited an accord that provided protections for grain ships, aiming to address the global food crisis. Given that both Russia and Ukraine are major suppliers of wheat, barley, and vegetable oil worldwide, the situation has significant implications for the global food supply and trade.
The attacks on critical port infrastructure in southern Ukraine are likely to result in increased transportation costs and could lead to reduced production by Ukrainian farmers, as other routes by road and rail through Europe may not be as efficient or accessible.
Recently, on Sunday, an attack on Odesa caused significant damage to the city, resulting in at least one person being killed and 22 others wounded. The attack also severely damaged 25 landmarks in Odesa, including the Transfiguration Cathedral, which holds great cultural and historical significance. UNESCO, the international heritage agency, strongly condemned the attack on the cathedral and other heritage sites in the city. As a response, UNESCO announced that it will send a mission to assess the extent of the damage in the coming days. It’s worth noting that Odesa’s historic center was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site earlier in the year, and the Russian attacks are in direct contradiction to Moscow’s earlier pledge to take precautions to spare World Heritage sites in Ukraine.
In response to accusations regarding the attack on the Transfiguration Cathedral, the Russian military denied any involvement, claiming that the cathedral was likely hit by a Ukrainian air defense missile. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also echoed this claim, stating without providing any evidence that the accusations against Russia were “an absolute lie.”
