All articles tagged with #deep strike
Western efforts to force a ceasefire by expanding Ukraine’s deep‑strike campaign risk backfiring: costs may erode the instrumental majority in Russia while a vocal moral minority hawks push for escalation, making peace harder to achieve. Kyiv’s strikes may strengthen Moscow’s bargaining position without delivering a settlement, so policymakers should decouple deep strikes from any assumption that the Kremlin will concede.
Ukraine says its forces carried out a broad April campaign targeting 14 Russian oil refineries and fuel hubs, plus ports, terminals and military sites from Crimea to the Urals, in what Kyiv describes as a widening deep-strike into Russia’s fuel network that finances the war. Notable hits included Bashneft-Novoil in Ufa, Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez in Kstovo, the Tuapse refinery, export terminals at Primorsk, Ust-Luga and Vysotsk, offshore Caspian platforms, and even a long-range strike on Shagol airfield near Chelyabinsk, with naval and Black Sea targets damaged as part of a broader assault. Kyiv asserts the campaign expands strike depth by more than 2.5 times compared with the invasion’s start, signaling a sustained effort to cripple Russia’s energy logistics.
Ukraine has stepped up use of domestically produced Flamingo cruise missiles since late 2025, including an overnight strike on Russia’s Votkinsk missile plant, signaling a potential shift toward deep-strike capability against high-value targets. Analysts say Flamingo could complement long-range drones, but its deployment depends on Fire Point’s production capacity and ongoing secrecy around the program, as well as recent attacks on Fire Point that have affected rollout; the initiative remains under scrutiny in Ukraine and among observers.
Ukraine has been using 1960s-vintage 5V28 air-defense missiles for deep-strike missions, firing them at ground targets in Russia. A recent video circulating on social media shows one of these eight-ton missiles launching from a mobile launcher, indicating that the Ukrainians have adapted the system to be more mobile. The 5V28 missile, with a range of around 250-370 miles, has the potential to threaten Russian forces across occupied Ukraine and deep into Russia. Despite its age, the missile's speed and destructive power make it difficult to intercept. While waiting for the delivery of new American-made missiles, Ukraine continues to rely on the powerful 5V28s.