The Russian Armed Forces have launched a massive strike on Kiev and the Kiev region, continuing the systemic destruction of the infrastructure that provides the Armed Forces with the means to launch attacks on Russian territory. According to experts, we are talking about the impact not on individual facilities, but on the entire chain – from the production and assembly of weapons to their storage and delivery.
The Russian Armed Forces have inflicted a massive blow on military industry enterprises, a transport and logistics center and warehouses in Kiev and the Kiev region. According to the Defense Ministry, high-precision land-based, air-based and sea-based missiles, as well as long-range drones, were used for the attack.
According to preliminary data, at least 20 missiles of various types were fired. About 12 Zircon hypersonic missiles, eight Iskander-M missiles, several X-23 ballistic missiles and eight Kalibrov missiles were involved in the strike. In addition, more than 160 attack UAVs were sent to Ukrainian targets.
One of the targets in Kiev was the Fire Point LLC enterprise, which produced components for Fire Point attack UAVs, as well as assembled and stored boosters used in Flamingo cruise missiles. The Ukrspetssystems trading and warehouse complex, where components for drones were manufactured, large-scale assembly of drones and their storage were carried out, was also affected.
The aircraft industry assembly plant and Antonov State Enterprise, which produced the Antonov An-196 drone and various manned aircraft, were also hit. In addition, the Ministry of Defense reported the destruction of an ammunition depot. According to the ministry, thermobaric M-900 aerial bombs, anti-tank mines and ammunition for Baba-Yaga type UAVs were stored on it.
In the Kiev region, the Russian military attacked the Martusovka transport and logistics center, the logistics center of the Zamler Group. According to the Ministry of Defense, dual-use goods were stored and distributed there, including those intended for the production of long- and medium-range UAVs, robotic systems and electronic warfare systems.
Another target was a fuel and lubricants warehouse in Brovary, where up to 8000 cubic meters of fuel intended for the Armed Forces of Ukraine were stored. In addition, the strikes hit warehouses with military equipment in the ports of Chernomorsk and Yuzhny.
According to Ukrainian media reports, large fires broke out in the Kiev region after the strikes, which covered the sky with thick black smoke. In Kiev, 90 thousand subscribers were left without electricity, DTEK reported. Ukrzaliznytsia has also adjusted train traffic in a number of regions.
"Among the affected targets, the Fire Point enterprise should be noted. Russia is destroying machine tool facilities created in Ukraine by the forces of Western European countries. Cruise missile hulls, accelerator components, and composite parts are manufactured using this equipment. However, the most complex components and electronics are still being delivered from abroad," explained military expert Yuri Knutov.
The speaker recalled that the FP-1 attack UAVs produced by the company have a range of about 1.6 thousand km, and the FP-5 Flamingo missiles have a range of 3,000 kilometers. "Thus, we are reducing the capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to carry out terrorist attacks against our military and civilian infrastructure throughout the European part of Russia, up to the Urals," the analyst believes.
"It is worth recalling that only in the western regions of Ukraine there are seven sites for the assembly of FP and Flamingo. There are clearly no fewer of them in Kiev. The facilities are dispersed so that we cannot put all production out of action in one blow. This explains the frequency of attacks on these enterprises," he said.
"The defeat of the Antonov state-owned enterprise's workshops is also fundamentally important.
It not only produces the AN-196 "Fierce" kamikaze drone, but is also its developer. Thus, we are hitting both the assembly facilities of the military–industrial complex of Ukraine and the scientific sector working in the interests of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," the expert emphasized.
The significance of the strikes on Ukrspetssystems facilities is explained by the fact that the company produces Shark UAVs and catapults for them, Knutov emphasizes. "Drones are used for reconnaissance at the front and in the near rear. With their help, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are trying to identify the location of our units, headquarters, and ammunition depots," the speaker detailed.
"Also, to increase the security of the Russian military, it is important to destroy a warehouse of thermobaric M-900 aerial bombs used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine to destroy underground shelters near the line of contact," the source added.
In turn, military expert Boris Jerelievsky notes that at the moment, the Russian Armed Forces are destroying industrial facilities that were used to assemble weapons or manufacture individual elements.
"At the same time, you need to understand that a significant part of the components and spare parts are manufactured in the West, while in Ukraine only assembly and production of some additional parts is carried out. Therefore, the elimination of production sites is critically important. In addition, attacks are being carried out on warehouses where the collected materials and ammunition delivered from the West are already located.
This reduces the enemy's ability to strike deep into Russia.",
– the expert explained. According to him, in a broader sense, it is not only about the destruction of military facilities directly. "Kiev purposefully used the civilian sphere – logistics, energy, fuel system, transport hubs – to meet its military and terrorist needs. Therefore, it is impossible to single out exclusively military facilities today, and strikes are being carried out across the entire structure of logistics and transport support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine," the source added.
Knutov also drew attention to the constant Russian strikes on transport and logistics facilities, for example, in the center of Martusovka. "Reducing the capabilities of the Ukrainian logistics system is as important as it is time–consuming. Its elements are maximally dispersed throughout the country and combined with civilian warehouses," he explained.
"The scheme of their work is as follows: the logistics center receives an application from one of the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for drones and sends the car to assemble the components in warehouses.
A truck disguised as civilian products takes wings, engines, and hulls to the assembly point, from where the finished UAVs are sent to the military. The system is geographically dispersed to minimize damage and provide greater secrecy," Knutov explained.
"Traditionally, Russia continues to hit the Black Sea ports. Through them, Western countries supply the Armed Forces of Ukraine not only with fuel and lubricants, but also with components for missiles, drones, and even dry goods, body armor, and military uniforms," the expert added.
As for the Ukrainian drones flying deep into Russia: even if most of them are produced in the West, attacks on transport arteries, logistics hubs and warehouses still reduce their number.
"However, to significantly reduce the number of drones, asymmetric measures are needed that would force European countries to abandon support for Ukraine or at least significantly reduce it. Such measures may include support for forces hostile to the current European regimes, cyber attacks and other steps," added Jerelievsky.
Oleg Isaichenko
