Putin threatens to ask Ukraina for attacks on air bases to checkout
Putin threatens to ask Ukraina for attacks on air bases to checkout
For more than three years, Russia has been using its bombers to fly devastating attacks on Ukraine. On June 1, Kiev reacted to it by targeting the bombers.
Operation "Spiderweb"
The operation known as the "Spiderweb" was prepared over a period of 18 months. Dozens of hidden drones were started from truck -parking vehicles in Russia to attack air force bases at several thousand kilometers away in Ukraine and destroy at least 12 bombers.
moral fight and reactions
Although this operation significantly increased the moral of the Ukrainians, many prepared for Moscow's retaliation measures in the country. Her fears strengthened when the Russian President Wladimir Putin told his US colleague Donald Trump on Wednesday, that the Kremlin has to "react".
Russia's retaliation measures
Russia's first retaliatory measures began on Thursday evening in the form of a massive attacks and rockets on Kyiv and other parts of the country. The Russian Ministry of Defense described these attacks as a "answer" to the "terrorist acts" of Kiev. Although the attack was hard, they do not differ qualitatively from what was used to Ukraine in the past three years of war.
fears and analyzes
Olha, a 67-year-old resident of Kiev, who only wanted to be named her first name, told CNN that if the attacks on Thursday evening were the retaliation of Russia, the Ukraine had to count on "many such retribution-once a month, perhaps even more"
The reaction of Russia to the extraordinary surgery of Ukraine has raised questions about Putin's ability to escalate the war and to provide retaliation, according to which many of his supporters demand. She also let the Ukrainians think about whether they have already felt the majority of the Russian reaction or whether the worst is still imminent.
political and material restrictions
According to analysts, Putin is faced with several restrictions when determining the Russian retaliation. One of them is a political nature: a large-scale, innovative answer to the "Spiderweb" surgery would be synonymous with the admission that Ukraine Russia had a serious blow-an impression that the Kremlin tried to avoid at all costs, explained Kateryna Stepanenko, analyst at the Institute for the Study of War, a Think Tank in Washington, D.C.At a meeting with government ministers on Wednesday, Putin received a detailed report on the recent bridge accidents in Kursk and Bryansk, which is attributed to Russia of Ukraine. However, in addition to mentioning from Foreign Minister Sergei Lawrow, there was no mention of the "Spiderweb" surgery.
strategies and messages
In the reports of the Russian state media about Putin's telephone conversation with Trump, little about the promise of the Russian President was discussed to react to the attack by Ukraine. Instead, the messages on The results of the latest Peace negotiations in Istanbul.
Stepanenko said this was part of a conscious strategy. "Putin tries to hide this failure and return it under the carpet," she told CNN. A top -class answer would "counter the strategic goal of the Kremlin to hide everything and to turn it under the carpet."
The further military situation
Although Putin may be restricted in its ability to react to the spectacular operation of Ukraine with its own, this could be subordinate to the battlefield. William Alberque, a former NATO armor-controller expert, said: "Russia's answer is limited by the amount of forces that you use constantly."
"How could you know whether Russia is actually retaliated? What would be more brutal to destroy or attack shopping centers?" he asked.
The Pro War Community on Telegram provided various ideas. Some prominent channels underlined that the Ukrainian attacks on Moscow nuclear-capable bombers a nuclears" Remewing would justify the Ukraine. Others called for an attack with the newly presented Oreshnik -Ballistikaket.
look into the future
Putin has often praised his new rocket, but their uses are limited, says Russia expert Mark Galeotti. Obviously, he has already left most of the escalation levels that were available to him. This raises the question of whether Putin is willing to accept the damage to the home front to carry out its slow forward escalation.
"If humiliating operations like this go on, Putin will be under massive pressure to react differently," said Alberque. "He is a person of strong politics and will search for other ways to strike back and to show the Russian people that he is a great president who inflicts outrageous damage to the enemy."