Damaged Tu-95 aircraft were used by Russia to bomb Ukraine, says EDF colonelERR
The Russian Tu-95 bombers hit in a Ukrainian drone strike were among those most frequently used to bomb Ukraine and were preparing for another operation against Ukraine on Sunday, said Col. Ants Kiviselg, head of the Estonian Defense Forces' intelligence center.
Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) carried out a major special operation on Sunday to destroy Russian bombers. The agency said more than 40 Russian bombers were hit at air bases in Russia.
Kiviselg said Ukraine attacked at least five strategic air force airfields deep inside Russian territory, fully destroying at least seven long-range bombers and damaging at least two more.
"The destroyed strategic Tu-95 bombers were the aircraft the Russian Federation used most often in attacks against Ukraine. About 30 percent of such modernized aircraft were either damaged or completely destroyed," he said.
"The bombers that were hit were preparing for strike missions, and it can be said that Ukraine targeted the most combat-ready segment of Russia's strategic air force," the colonel told the media.
"To recover from this loss, Russia will need a significant amount of additional resources. Above all, this means bolstering internal security and force protection measures within Russia," he added.
But even more importantly, according to Kiviselg, was the message Ukraine sent. By carrying out multiple simultaneous special operations in Russia's most remote regions, it sent a powerful message to the Putin regime about its operational potential. It was big enough to push Russia toward genuine peace talks.
"In this situation, any retaliatory actions by Russia are powerless and toothless and only highlight Russia's ineffectiveness," he said.
The colonel said Russia's retaliatory action likely took place overnight into Friday, when Russia launched 407 attack drones and 44 missiles at Ukraine. He believes Russia is currently not capable of doing more than that.
"Our assessment is that the Russians do ont really have another move to make here. We have seen in the past that they gather up their offensive capabilities and then carry out attacks with various assets over a short time span," Kiviselg said.
Situation on the front
Speaking more broadly about combat activity on the Ukrainian front, the head of the Estonian Defense Forces' intelligence center said the intensity of last week's fighting had decreased by 12 percent, with an average of 166 attacks per day. Airstrikes in the combat zone have also dropped by 14 percent, averaging 77 per day.
"The temporary uptick in attacks last week aligned with the dynamics of the negotiation process and served as a demonstrative gesture to show Russia's unwillingness to proceed with the peace process under current conditions. We will likely see similar short-term surges in attacks in the future," Kiviselg said.
The biggest battlefield shift, the colonel said, is Russia's steadily increasing pressure on Sumy Oblast.
"According to public sources, Russian Federation forces have gradually advanced in the border area in the direction of Sumy. The operational group in the Sumy direction primarily consists of airborne and naval infantry units deployed in Russia's Kursk Oblast, including regiments from the Pskov-based 76th Air Assault Division. So far, airborne and naval infantry units have been the main forces redeployed across the theater from one axis to another. Nevertheless, the activity on the Sumy-Kursk axis remains below that of the main offensive axis in Donetsk Oblast," he said.
"Although the main tactical effort remains focused on Pokrovsk and Kostyantynivka in Donetsk Oblast, the Russian Federation's armed forces have not achieved significant success in the region over the past week. The isolation or capture of either settlement remains unlikely in the near future. Furthermore, according to assessments, Russian forces are still incapable of achieving an operational-level breakthrough on any sector of the front, and Ukrainian forces are managing to keep the pressure under control," Kiviselg said.
https://news.err.ee/1609715574/damaged-tu-95-aircraft-were-used-by-russia-to-bomb-ukraine-says-edf-colonel
