US predicts new Russian retaliation after jet losses – Reuters

According to US officials, Russia has not yet delivered a full response to the drone attacks on its airbases that occurred last weekend. Officials believe the Kremlin is preparing a large, multi-pronged strike in the near future.

One source told the agency that the exact timing of the attack is unknown, but it could happen in the coming days. Another official clarified that the response is expected to involve various airborne weapons, including missiles and drones.

Officials interviewed by Reuters refrained from disclosing the likely targets of Russian strikes and did not go into detail about intelligence data. One of them noted that Moscow is preparing an "asymmetric" response — meaning it will not mirror the SBU drone strikes on Russian aircraft.

Symbolic targets

According to the American side, the massive missile attack on Kyiv in the early hours of Friday, June 6, is only the beginning of Russia's response, and the main phase is yet to come.

One Western diplomat suggested that Russia is likely to focus future strikes on symbolic targets, including government buildings, to send a clear signal to Kyiv.

Another senior diplomat expects the attack to be "huge, vicious and unrelenting," but emphasized that "the Ukrainians are brave people."

Russian and Ukrainian embassies in Washington, as well as the White House, declined to comment to the agency.

Michael Kofman, a Russia expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said Russia may strike the SBU’s central office in Kyiv or regional intelligence directorates using medium-range ballistic missiles. Ukrainian defense industry facilities may also be targeted.

At the same time, the analyst noted that Russia’s resources for further escalation are limited, as a significant portion of its military capabilities is already actively engaged in combat.

"In general, Russia's ability to substantially escalate strikes from what they are already doing - and attempting to do over the past month - is quite constrained," Kofman said.

SBU operation Spiderweb

According to Ukrainian intelligence, 117 drones were used in the June 1 operation under the codename Spiderweb, launched from trucks inside Russian territory.

The SBU reported that the operation resulted in the destruction or serious damage to more than 40 aircraft, accounting for 34% of Russia’s entire fleet of strategic bombers.

Meanwhile, German Major General Christian Freuding reported that only 10% of Russia's strategic aviation was affected.

The US estimates Russian losses at 20 damaged aircraft, with about 10 completely destroyed.

The Russian government claimed that no aircraft were destroyed and that all damage would be repaired. However, Russian military bloggers acknowledged the loss or serious damage of about ten aircraft, including ones capable of carrying nuclear weapons.

On June 4, US President Donald Trump, during a phone call, urged Russian dictator Vladimir Putin not to carry out a revenge strike on Ukraine, but noted that the Russian leader has a lot of hatred and had not ruled out retaliation.

It is also worth noting that the day before, Trump effectively shifted blame to Ukraine for the massive Russian missile strike on the night of June 6.