Ukrainian drone hits a plant deep inside Russia after record drone attacks

A Ukrainian drone struck a Russian industrial plant some 1300 kilometers from Ukraine a local official said Tuesday after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy prioritised the weapons development and Russia pounded Ukraine with a monthly record of drones in JuneBoth sides in the more than threeyear war following Russias February 2022 invasion of its neighbour have raced to improve drone technology and enhance their use on the battlefield They have deployed increasingly sophisticated and deadlier drones turning the war into a testing ground for the new weaponryUkraine is under severe strain from a Russian push at places on the roughly 1000kilometer front line but analysts say its defences are largely holding firm With recent direct peace talks delivering no progress on USled international efforts to halt the fighting Russia and Ukraine are bulking up their arsenalsRussia last month launched 5438 drones at Ukraine a new monthly record according to official data collated by The Associated PressUkraine is stepping up drone productionMeanwhile a Ukrainian drone hit an industrial plant in Izhevsk about 1000 kilometers east of Moscow killing three people and injuring 35 Alexander Brechalov head of the Udmurtia region said The plants workers were evacuated he saidThe drone struck the Kupol Electromechanical Plant which produces air defence systems and drones for the Russian military according to an official with Ukraines Security Service the SBUAt least two direct hits were recorded on the plants buildings the official said speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publiclyUkraine has for months been using domestically produced longrange drones to strike plants storage sites and logistical hubs deep inside Russian territory In May last year a Ukrainian drone hit an earlywarning radar in the Russian city of Orsk some 1800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border Kyiv officials claimedZelenskyy said Ukraines domestic production of drones is about to increase in response to Russias expanded barragesThe priority is drones interceptor drones and longrange strike drones he said on Telegram late MondayThis is extremely important he added Russia is investing in its unmanned capabilities Russia is planning to increase the number of drones used in strikes against our state We are preparing our countermeasuresRussias Defence Ministry said that 60 Ukrainian drones were downed overnight over several regions including 17 over Crimea 16 over the Rostov region and four over the Saratov regionAt the same time four Russian Shahed drones struck the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzia during the night leaving more than 1600 households without power according to authoritiesUkraines air force said Tuesday that Russia fired 52 Shahed and decoy drones at the country overnightUS envoy criticises Russian attacksUS President Donald Trumps special envoy to Ukraine and Russia retired Lt Gen Keith Kellogg rebuked Russia for continuing to strike civilian areas of Ukraine while effectively rejecting a ceasefire and dragging its feet on a peace settlementWe urge an immediate ceasefire and a move to trilateral talks to end the war Kellogg said on the social platform X late Monday Russia cannot continue to stall for time while it bombs civilian targets in UkraineUkraine is developing its own defence industry as uncertainty remains over whether the Trump administration will continue to provide crucial military aidBetween March and April the United States allocated no new aid to Ukraine according to Germanys Kiel Institute which tracks such supportEurope its support and for the first time since June 2022 surpassed the US in total military aid totaling 72 billion euros 85 billion compared with 65 billion euros 77 billion from the US the institute said last monthThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever