Russia has accused Ukraine of several attacks on Russian territory and wants to step up its attacks on Kyiv in retaliation.
Russia announced on Friday that it had destroyed an arms factory in a Kyiv suburb and gave assurances that strikes in the Ukrainian capital would be intensified in response to Ukraine’s attacks on Russian territory.
These comments appear to herald a new approach by Russia, which, after failing to defeat the defenders of Kiev, announced in late March that it would focus on eastern Ukraine and withdrew its forces, which led the attack on the Ukrainian capital.
“The number and scale of missile attacks on sites in Kyiv will increase in response to all terrorist attacks and acts of sabotage carried out on Russian territory by the nationalist regime in Kyiv,” Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. He also said that Russia destroyed a surface-to-air missile production workshop at the Vizar factory near Kyiv using a Kalibr cruise missile.
Unsubstantiated allegations
On Thursday, governors of two Russian regions bordering Ukraine accused Ukrainian forces of bombing two villages on Russian territory, Klimovo and Spodariouchino, injuring seven. In Klimovo, the attack was carried out by two Ukrainian helicopters, Russian authorities claimed, allegations denied by Kyiv and not independently verifiable.
On Friday, however, Igor Konashenkov claimed that one of the helicopters that carried out the raid was destroyed by a missile fired from the S-400 anti-aircraft system while returning to his base in Ukraine.
Tension renewed after the loss of a Russian ship?
On Thursday night, Russia recorded the loss of the Moskva, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet, which Kyiv said was hit by two Ukrainian missiles and Moscow said was hit by a fire that detonated the ammunition.
In any case, this is a significant setback for the Russian Navy. A setback that is so great that the CIA warns: According to American secret services, Russian President Vladimir Putin could switch to using tactical or weak nuclear weapons if he got into trouble.