Working From The Territory of Russia

"To stop Russia's missile terror, it is necessary to deprive their military industrial complex of semi-conductors and microchips."

"We're working on it with partner governments."

Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to Volodomyr Zelenskyy

Ukraine claims to have hit Moscow's Tomilinsky Electronics Factory, producing electronics for missiles. Smoke is seen pluming out of a building said to be the factory

 

Officials in Ukraine announced a drone strike was carried out on a factory in Moscow's outskirts. The manufacturer of microchips used in the production of missiles. The strike is both symbolically meaningful and practically significant, to deprive Russia of the technical features required for its missile production capabilities.

The strike on the Tomilinsky electronics factory in Lyubertsy, to the east of Moscow, would have the required effect of undermining "Russia's missile terror". Moscow's mayor claimed a drone was shot down before reaching its intended target. The unmanned aerial vehicle was disabled near Lyubertsy, according to Sergey Soyanin, and no damage had resulted.

Media in Russia dedicated to Kremlin war propaganda published footage claiming to be of the factory, undamaged; the drone, it was explained had fortuitously crashed into a nearby field. Ukraine's GUR military intelligence belied the claims, however: "Sobyanin has lied: their air defence did not shoot down anything", the factory had been set ablaze.

"The Tomilinsky electronics factory in Lyubertsy is on fire", GUR spokesman Andiy Yusov repeated, with authority to RBC Ukraine news website. Microchips intended for use in Russia's Kalibr cruise missiles, repeatedly striking Ukraine since Moscow launched its invasion had likely been destroyed, he added. Separately, another GUR official confirmed the agency was responsible for the operation: "It was a success".

In another strike, a recent drone attack took place on a Russian airbase in Pskov, over 400 miles from Ukraine near the border with Estonia and Latvia; too remote for an attack to be credited from Ukrainian territory, raising speculation that the attack was carried out from within Russia itself. Major General Kyrylo Budanov refused to commit whether the attack was carried out by Russian saboteurs or by Ukrainian troops, saying: "We are working from the territory of Russia".

Satellite images from the Pskov airfield were released by the GUR, showing what appears to be massive holes midsection of two IL-76 transport planes. Military experts in Russia, announced the Kremlin, were studying the situation, working to discover the routes drones are taking "to prevent such situations in the future".

Wednesday's attack on Pskov left several aircraft damaged  EPA