Zelenskyy announced an update to the list of targets for long-range strikes against Russia
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, announced that he had chaired a meeting on long-range strikes, during which it was agreed to continue operations and update the list of priority targets in line with their impact on Russia’s ability to continue the war.
According to the Head of State, the plan for Ukraine’s long-range strikes against Russia is being implemented in line with the established priorities.
Zelenskyy noted that the range of Ukrainian strikes already exceeds 3,000 kilometres, and the capacity to strike targets at even greater distances continues to expand.
The President stated that the strategic depth of Russia’s rear, which had long been an advantage for Russia, is now becoming a problem for its military and political leadership, as most of Russia’s air defence systems are concentrated around Moscow, St Petersburg, the Crimean Bridge and state residences.
According to Zelenskyy, Ukrainian drones are already capable of reaching targets in the Ural region, Siberia and other areas far from Moscow. He reported that since the launch of the long-range strike plan earlier this year, over a thousand strike missions have been carried out. He said that oil facilities, critical military production sites and systemically important logistics facilities had been struck.
“The main aim is for our long-range pressure to push Russia even further towards diplomacy by complicating the production of weapons components, causing oil and other economic losses, and bringing this war back to its ‘home port’,” the president said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy also emphasised that Ukraine had conveyed to Russia’s political leadership all the necessary proposals for ending the war with a “dignified peace”. He added that international partners had also been informed of the steps required to achieve this.
At the end of June, the President announced that he had approved a “40-day operation of influence” on Russia by the Security Service of Ukraine, with the aim of bringing the war to an end. He did not disclose the details of the operation, but at the time he mentioned a “plan for far-reaching sanctions”.
Following this, as noted in an additional source, strikes on oil refineries, as well as on Wildberries marketplace warehouses, intensified.
On 10 July, Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the creation of a Long-Range Influence Command on Russia within the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to him, the new unit is to concentrate all available resources on further reducing Russia’s military capabilities.
