Ukraine’s Air Force carried out a strike on a Russian drone launch site near the village of Tetkino in Russia’s Kursk Oblast on April 19, Ukraine’s General Staff reported.
According to the statement, the strike killed up to 20 drone operators. The facility was reportedly used by Russian forces to prepare, equip and launch reconnaissance, strike and FPV drones.
Russian forces have regularly launched large numbers of drones against Ukraine in near-nightly strikes, often targeting civilian infrastructure and residential areas during night attacks.
“Our strike is a tangible response to [Russia’s] actions against the Ukrainian army,” Ukraine’s General Staff said. “No war crime will go unpunished.”
The strike came as Kyiv pushed for a temporary pause in long-range attacks. On April 20, President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed a 30-day ceasefire on drone and missile strikes aimed at civilian infrastructure. The Kremlin has not supported the proposal, which has U.S. backing.
The day before the Ukrainian strike, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced an Easter truce along the front line, stating that Russian troops would refrain from combat during the holiday weekend. President Zelensky later said that Russia had violated the truce around 3,000 times since its announcement.
Russian officials have not publicly commented on the reported strike in Tetkino. The strike is one that is becoming increasingly common in the Russo-Ukrainian war, with Ukraine’s ability to target military infrastructure inside Russian territory with cross-border drone and missile attacks constantly improving.
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Post Image – Servicemen of the 15th Separate Artillery Reconnaissance Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine prepare a Shark drone produced by the Ukrainian company Ukrspecsystems for launch, October 30, 2023. (Post Image Credit: Image Bank for the War in Ukraine)
