Russian aircraft were damaged, but not destroyed, in Ukraine's attack on June 1 and will be restored. This was assured by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, quoted by the "Reuters" and TASS agencies, reports News.bg.
“The equipment, as stated by representatives of the Defense Ministry, was not destroyed, but only damaged. It will be restored“, Ryabkov stressed.
The United States estimates that the Ukrainian drone attack over the weekend hit up to 20 Russian military aircraft, with about 10 of them completely destroyed. This figure is approximately half the number, named by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Despite differing assessments, US officials have described the operation as “extremely significant“. One of them warned that such strikes could push Moscow towards a more intransigent position in US-brokered talks to end the war.
In response to the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a phone call with former US President Donald Trump that Moscow would have to respond. Trump, for his part, described the conversation as “good” but stressed that it “will not lead to immediate peace“.
Ukraine claims to have carried out the strikes on four Russian air bases using 117 drones launched from containers located near the targets. The operation was codenamed “Website”.