Long-range missiles hit airfields in areas occupied by Russia, a mistake according to Putin
On Tuesday, October 17, Ukrainian special forces claimed to have carried out destructive strikes against two Russian army airfields in Lugansk and Berdyansk, in areas occupied by Russia in eastern and southern Ukraine.
The operation enabled the destruction of takeoff runways, nine helicopters, an anti-aircraft system and an ammunition warehouse, according to a statement published on Telegram by Ukrainian special forces.
The Russian army has made no comments; Moscow very rarely discusses its own losses. But the Telegram channels Rybar and WarGonzo, close to the Russian army, reported an attack using long-range tactical missiles (ATACM) on an airfield in Berdiansk, without being able to specify the extent of the damage.
According to Rybar, followed by more than 1.2 million people, six long-range missiles were fired at Berdyansk, three of which were shot down by Russian air defense. The three remaining missiles “hit their target” by hitting an ammunition depot and damaging several helicopters “to varying degrees,” according to this source.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, without mentioning this specific case, welcomed the fact that his forces managed to strike Russian supply lines, at a time when they are engaged in a very difficult counter-offensive to liberate the occupied territories.
The same day Washington announced that it had delivered ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System) with a range of 165 km to the Ukrainian forces in great secrecy so that they could shell Russian rear bases.
The next day Vladimir Putin assured that the long-range missiles delivered by the United States to Ukraine will only “prolong the agony” of the country, Kiev for its part hoping that these weapons will help it accelerate its difficult counter-attack. offensive in progress.
The Ukrainian president thanked his Western allies who delivered effective weapons as well as “every Ukrainian fighter”, saying they managed to hold their positions around Avdiivka and Kupiansk in eastern Ukraine where the Russian army attempted offensives in recent weeks.
Ukraine has been insisting for months that Europeans and Americans increase deliveries of longer-range missiles to be able to strike the Russians far behind the front and thus disrupt their logistics chain.
But so far, the West has only given a limited number of its munitions, fearing that Ukraine could use them to attack Russian territory directly as it already does with its own drones.
