Ukraine enters new stage of strikes on Russia's deep rear - ISW
Ukraine has gained the ability to strike at the deep rear of the Russian Federation (Russian media)
The latest drone attack on an oil refinery in the Republic of Tatarstan signals a breakthrough in Ukraine's strategy of striking deep inside Russian territory, according to findings from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
The report says that on April 2, Ukrainian drones targeted facilities at the Taneko oil refinery in the city of Yelabuga, Republic of Tatarstan. ISW highlighted that this facility is located over 1200 kilometers from the Ukrainian border with Russia.
According to Reuters, such regular drone strikes by Ukraine on Russian oil refineries have led to the shutdown of about 14% of all Russian refining capacity.
"The April 2 strikes are the first Ukrainian strikes on Tatarstan, and the distance of the targets from Ukraine’s borders represents a significant inflection in Ukraine’s demonstrated capability to conduct long-range strikes far into the Russian rear. ISW continues to assess that such Ukrainian strikes are a necessary component of Ukraine’s campaign to use asymmetric means to degrade industries that supply and support the Russian military," the report says.
Drone attacks on enterprises in Tatarstan
On April 2, Ukrainian drones attacked enterprises in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia for the first time. Drones hit the Taneko oil refinery in the Alabuga special economic zone near the city of Yelabuga, which is over 1000 kilometers from the border with Ukraine.
According to RBC-Ukraine's sources in the special services, it was an operation by the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense. In addition to the refinery, drones also hit the Shahed assembly plant.
Russians claim that electronic warfare means downed the drone, it fell and caused a fire. Meanwhile, they do not acknowledge that the strikes caused any significant damage to drone production plants or refineries.
For more details on the attacks on plants in Tatarstan and their consequences, see the material by RBC-Ukraine.
