Ukraine strikes key industrial site in Russia

Ukrainian drones struck an industrial site deep inside Russia on Saturday, and a Russian news channel reported the target was a key state-owned missile factory. The attack took place in Russia’s Udmurt Republic, leaving 11 injured, three of whom were hospitalised, according to a Telegram post by Sergei Bagin, the local health minister.

“One of the republic’s facilities was attacked by drones” launched by Ukraine, regional head Alexander Brechalov said in another Telegram post. He added that the strike caused injuries and damage but did not name the site or give further details. An unofficial Russian news channel on Telegram, Astra, said Ukrainian drones struck the Votkinsk Machine Building Plant, a major state defence enterprise. Astra said its claim was based on an analysis of footage from local residents.

There was no immediate comment from Ukrainian authorities. The Votkinsk factory, more than 1,400 kilometres from Ukraine, produces Iskander ballistic missiles, often used in strikes against the country, as well as nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles. Other Russian news channels posted videos and photos, which they said were from Votkinsk residents, showing black smoke rising from an industrial site and blown-out windows on buildings.

Another unofficial Russian Telegram channel, SHOT, which often quotes contacts in the security services, said residents of Votkinsk reported hearing at least three blasts during the night, as well as what they thought was the humming of drones. The Udmurt Republic’s main passenger airport, in the city of Izhevsk, and airports in other nearby regions suspended operations early on Saturday, according to Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsiya.

The strike came days after the latest US-brokered talks between envoys from Moscow and Kyiv over Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine ended Wednesday with no sign of a breakthrough, as the war’s fourth anniversary approaches next week. The negotiations in Switzerland were the third round of direct talks organized by Washington, after meetings earlier this year in Abu Dhabi that officials described as constructive but which also made no major headway.

Expectations for significant progress in Geneva were low. Russia attacked Ukraine with 120 drones and one ballistic missile overnight into Saturday, Ukraine’s Air Force said. Ukrainian forces shot down 106 drones, while the missile and 13 drones struck targets in 11 locations in the country, the statement said. Oleh Kiper, the head of Ukraine’s Odesa region on the Black Sea, said drones damaged civilian and energy infrastructure facilities in the region, including a secondary school and an energy company’s warehouses.

Two people were also injured, he said in a statement on Telegram. The southern port city of Odesa and surrounding region have been frequent targets for Russian attacks. Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said tens of thousands of Odesa’s residents were left without heating and running water.

In remarks published on social media on Monday evening, Zelenskyy said Moscow should be “held accountable” for the relentless strikes, which he said undermine the US push for peace. A local passes by a destroyed apartment building following an Russian air strike in the town of Komyshuvakha in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine.