After strike deep in Russia, Zelenskyy says Ukraine has developed long-range weapon

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday his country has developed a weapon that hit a target 700 kilometres away, in an apparent reference to the previous day's strike on an airport in western Russia.

Zelenskyy said on his Telegram channel that the weapon was produced by Ukraine's Ministry of Strategic Industries, but he gave no other details.

On Wednesday, a four-hour wave of drones that Moscow blamed on Ukraine hit an airport near Russia's border with Estonia and Latvia, damaging four Il-76 military transport planes, according to local reports.

The president's comments marked an apparent shift in strategy, as Kyiv officials typically don't explicitly claim or deny responsibility for attacks on Russian soil, choosing instead to refer to the strikes indirectly.

The former secretary of the country's National Security and Defence Council hinted on Thursday that Ukraine was directly responsible.

"There is a high probability Ukraine is behind this, obviously, and we're not hiding it," Oleksandr Danylyuk told CBC News in an interview.

"Ukraine is building the capability to attack Russia, and we need this because Russia needs to understand that whatever they do to Ukraine, both military and civilians, they will get a response from us sooner or later."

WATCH | At least 6 regions in Russia targeted by drones:

Attacks light up night sky in western Russia, Kyiv

2 days ago

Duration 0:59

Russia's military repelled a Ukrainian drone attack on an airport in the western city of Pskov, officials said Wednesday. Regional Gov. Mikhail Vedernikov published a video shot from a residential area showing smoke rising from a fire in the distance. Meanwhile, Russian forces hit Kyiv with drones and missiles overnight in an attack Ukrainian officials said killed two people.

In all, six Russian regions were targeted in the barrage. The airport is in Russia's Pskov region, about 700 kilometres north of the Ukrainian border.

The attack forced the closure of Pskov's airport, though it reopened Thursday, according to Russian transport officials.

Ukraine has typically relied on Western nations to provide a wide array of weapons to fight back against the invasion Russia launched 18 months ago. Russia has outpaced the nation because it is a much larger country with significantly more resources — both domestically and from countries such as Iran and North Korea.

"This sector is developing very, very quickly [in Ukraine]," Danylyuk said. "We are catching up in terms of the technical capability, but in terms of production, Russia is still ahead and it will be very difficult to match it … but Ukrainians, we are very determined to fight back."

Danylyuk said Ukraine shifted to increase its domestic drone production last year, after Russia used Iranian-produced Shahed drones to destroy the energy grid. The attack deprived millions of people of light and heat.

"The need [became] totally clear to everyone after the attacks by Russia in the autumn," he said.

WATCH | Former security official hints Ukraine behind drone attacks in Russia:

'High probability' Ukraine behind drone attacks, former security official says

11 hours ago

Duration 1:27

The former secretary of the country's National Security and Defence Council hinted on Thursday that Ukraine was directly responsible for recent drone attacks within Russia. 'There is a high probability Ukraine is behind this, obviously, and we're not hiding it,' Oleksandr Danylyuk told CBC News.

"We understand that this type of attack is coming this autumn and winter, and we need to prepare for those — and also, we need to send a corresponding response to Russia."

The apparent Ukrainian drones reaching deep into Russia, as well as cross-border sabotage missions, are part of Kyiv's efforts to heap domestic pressure on the Kremlin, militarily and politically. Meanwhile, a Ukrainian counteroffensive launched in June is chipping away at some parts of the front line, Kyiv officials claim.

Eighteen months into the war, Ukraine is aiming to "erode Russian morale and increase pressure on its commanders,'' the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London-based think-tank, said in an assessment.

The strategy is "to bring Russian forces to a tipping point where combat power and morale may begin to break,'' the institute said in the analysis late Wednesday.

Another drone intercepted overnight near Moscow resulted in flight delays at several airports around the Russian capital, officials said Thursday. No injuries were reported.

Russian news agency Interfax reported, meanwhile, that security services killed two people and detained five members of a Ukrainian sabotage group in the Bryansk border region on Wednesday.