In early June, Ukraine executed one of the boldest military operations since the beginning of the Russian invasion. A coordinated attack with Drones hit Russian air bases located up to 3,000 kilometers from kyiv and left out a substantial part of the Kremlin strategic bombers fleet. The magnitude of the coup has even surprised in Washington, where one of the most influential newspapers has described the attack as “unprecedented” and with “geostrategic implications of great reach.”
According to the information published by the American newspaper, more than 40 Tupolev Bombers-Modelos TU-95 and TU-22m3-would have been destroyed or damaged. They are the same airplanes that Russia uses almost daily to launch missiles against Ukrainian cities, and also those used as a platform for its nuclear deterrence. Satellite images and verified videos have allowed to confirm at least 14 affected aircraft, although analysts estimate that the real figure could double.
The damage is not just quantitative. These models, designed in the Cold War, no longer occur. Moscow does not have the capacity to replenish the lost units, and the most modern aircraft available does not match their scope or its load capacity. For more Inri, one of the devices reached as a air and control air platform, a critical piece for modern war.
“The enemy bombarded our country with those planes almost every night, and today he has felt that ‘revenge is inevitable,” said SBU head, Vasyl Maliuk, confirming that the order of the attack was directly given by President Volodimir Zelenski. From the USA, it is already pointed out that this success will force Russia to “completely rethink how it operates, stores and protects its strategic bombers fleet.” In other words: the coup has made a dent not only in Russian military capacity, but also in its image as a global power.
A turning point
The article of The Wall Street Journal (Very cited in Western media) states that the destruction of Tupolev represents more than a tactical victory. It is a setback to Russia’s ability to project power beyond its borders, and a notice for its opponents, including the United States. As the newspaper explains, these airplanes fulfill a function equivalent to that of the B-52 and B-1 of the American Arsenal, and are one of the three pillars of the Russian nuclear triad, next to the submarines and the terrestrial missiles.
The analysis makes it clear that it is not a simple successful attack, but a movement that changes the rules of the game. Moscow not only loses offensive capacity: it also loses strategic prestige. “The Ukrainian attack has forced Russia to move what remains of its fleet to even farther bases, moving away its air power from the battlefield,” the newspaper details.
The article places this action within a chain of Ukrainian offensives that have managed to penetrate deeply in Russian territory. From the sabotage of the Kerch bridge to the destruction of critical infrastructure such as a nuclear alert radar, kyiv has been gaining ground in the symbolic and operational plane. And the June attack represents, according to The Wall Street Journal, “a before and after.”
The same day of the attack, Russia and Ukraine met in Istanbul to try to advance in peace negotiations. The conversations were brief and without advances, which reflects the growing distancing between both parties, at a time when Ukraine demonstrates, with facts, that the course of the war can still change.
