Ukrainian drone strikes a Russian plant after record Russian drone attacks in June
Both sides in the more than three-year war following Russia's February 2022 invasion of its neighbor have raced to improve drone technology and enhance their use on the battlefield. They have deployed increasingly sophisticated and deadlier drones, turning the war into a testing ground for the new weaponry.
Ukraine is under severe strain from a Russian push at places on the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, but analysts say its defenses are largely holding firm. With recent direct peace talks delivering no progress on U.S.-led international efforts to halt the fighting, Russia and Ukraine are bulking up their arsenals.
Russia last month launched 5,438 drones at Ukraine, a new monthly record, according to official data collated by The Associated Press.
Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone hit an industrial plant in Izhevsk, about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) east of Moscow, injuring several people and starting a fire, Izhevsk regional Gov. Alexander Brechalov said. The plant's workers were evacuated, he said.
Ukraine has for months been using domestically produced long-range drones to strike plants, storage sites and logistical hubs deep inside Russian territory.
Andrii Kovalenko, the head of the counter-disinformation branch of Ukraine's Security Council, indicated on the Telegram messaging app that Tuesday's target was a local plant producing Russian drones and air defense systems.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine's domestic production of drones is about to increase in response to Russia's expanded barrages.
'The priority is drones, interceptor drones and long-range strike drones,' he said on Telegram late Monday.
'This is extremely important,' he added. 'Russia is investing in its unmanned capabilities, Russia is planning to increase the number of drones used in strikes against our state. We are preparing our countermeasures.'
Russia's Defense Ministry said that 60 Ukrainian drones were downed overnight over several regions, including 17 over Crimea, 16 over the Rostov region and four over the Saratov region.
At the same time, four Russian Shahed drones struck the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzia during the night, leaving more than 1,600 households without power, according to authorities.
Ukraine's air force said Tuesday that Russia fired 52 Shahed and decoy drones at the country overnight.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, rebuked Russia for continuing to strike civilian areas of Ukraine while effectively rejecting a ceasefire and dragging its feet on a peace settlement.
'We urge an immediate ceasefire and a move to trilateral talks to end the war,' Kellogg said on the social platform X late Monday. 'Russia cannot continue to stall for time while it bombs civilian targets in Ukraine.'
Ukraine is developing its own defense industry as uncertainty remains over whether the Trump administration will continue to provide crucial military aid.
Between March and April, the United States allocated no new aid to Ukraine, according to Germany's Kiel Institute, which tracks such support.
Europe its support and for the first time since June 2022 surpassed the U.S. in total military aid, totaling 72 billion euros ($85 billion) compared with 65 billion euros ($77 billion) from the U.S., the institute said last month.
___
Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Associated Press
7 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Regulators approve plan for Georgia Power to freeze base rates through 2028
ATLANTA (AP) — Utility regulators on Tuesday approved a plan for Georgia Power Co. to freeze base power rates through the end of 2028, although opponents argue that customers could face risks later if costs to serve new computer data centers pile up. The five Republicans on the Georgia Public Service Commission voted unanimously for the plan after regulatory staff and the company agreed to it earlier. 'Freezing these rates shows that we're listening to ratepayers and we're doing all we can to protect them and continue to grow this economy in this state,' Commissioner Tim Echols said after the vote. Rates could still go up next year when commissioners consider how customers will pay for $862 million in storm damage, mainly due to 2024's Hurricane Helene. In testimony, Georgia Power Chief Financial Officer Aaron Abramovitz said the company hopes any rate increase to repay the damage could be offset with a decrease in the charge customers have been paying since 2023 to make up for higher costs of buying natural gas and coal. Customers have seen bills rise six times in recent years because of higher natural gas costs and construction projects, including two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle near Augusta. A typical Georgia Power residential customer now pays more than $175 a month, including taxes. The agreement allows Echols and Commissioner Fitz Johnson to seek reelection this year without a rate increase threatening their campaigns. Echols will face Democrat Alicia Johnson in November. Democrats Peter Hubbard and Keisha Sean Waites are vying in a July 15 runoff to face Fitz Johnson in the general election. Georgia Power CEO Kim Greene called the rate freeze a 'great result for customers, balancing the mutual benefits of extraordinary economic growth among all stakeholders and helping to ensure that we remain equipped to continue supporting growth in this state.' Opponents said the deal didn't do enough to contain the high profits of Georgia Power, a unit of Atlanta-based Southern Co, and doesn't provide enough scrutiny of the company's operations. Commissioner Lauren McDonald on Tuesday unsuccessfully attempted to limit how much the company can earn on the money it has invested — called return on equity — to 11.5% instead of 11.9%. Return on equity is the key driver of the company's profits. Georgia Power is the state's only privately owned electrical utility, serving 2.3 million customers statewide. Last year, Georgia Power collected $11.3 billion in revenue and contributed $2.5 billion in profit to Southern Co. The company predicts rapidly increasing demand from computer data centers. Georgia Power has said regular customers won't pay for power plants and transmission lines needed to electrify data centers, a pledge now backed by commission rules. But the company said in talks with commission staff that it could ask for a rate increase of up to $2.6 billion over three years. Instead, the company and staff hashed out a deal for the company to use tax credits and other financial maneuvers to boost its return on equity without raising rates. Opponents noted that the company had promised 'downward pressure' on rates last year when the commission approved an unusual request for Georgia Power to build more power plants outside the regular schedule. They asked why rates were staying flat instead of going down. John Wilson, an expert witness for the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and other environmental groups, called it a 'rate increase hidden in the shadows.' Some advocates had called for Echols, McDonald and Commission Chair Jason Shaw to recuse themselves from the vote, saying they violated the commissioners' quasi-judicial role by supporting the deal before hearing evidence. Shaw and Echols spoke in favor of the agreement and McDonald appeared at a news conference but didn't speak. All three commissioners declined to recuse themselves, saying they had done nothing wrong. The deal comes even as commissioners are still considering Georgia Power's three-year plan to generate enough electricity to meet the state's needs. That plan foresees a very large increase in electrical demand, requiring new power plants or new purchases from existing plants. Typically, a rate plan is approved after the integrated resource plan, ensuring the utility can pay for improvements. Instead, Georgia Power will either absorb the costs or seek to pass them on to customers beginning in 2029.
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Democrat Colin Allred is running again for US Senate in Texas
DALLAS (AP) — Former Texas congressman Colin Allred launched another run for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday after the Democrat's challenge against Republican Sen. Ted Cruz last year broke records for spending but did not deliver his party the breakthrough it has sought for decades in the state. This time, Allred is seeking the seat of Republican Sen. John Cornyn, who is facing a primary challenge from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in what is likely to be one of the GOP's most contentious contests in 2026. Allred's announcement comes just seven months after he lost by nearly 9 percentage points to Cruz. That race was one of the most expensive in the country last cycle, with Democrats spending more than $130 million trying to unseat Cruz. A former NFL linebacker and attorney, Allred is the first high-profile Democrat to declare himself a candidate in the race that Democrats see as their best shot next year at ending a 30-year drought in statewide elections in Texas. Another former Democratic congressman, Beto O'Rourke, who came within 3 percentage points of defeating Cruz in 2018, also hasn't ruled out a run. In a video announcing his candidacy, Allred took aim at both Cornyn and Paxton and cast himself as a fighter for those struggling to get ahead. "I get it. Real change might feel impossible," Allred said. 'But I'm not giving up.' 'Texans have already rejected your liberal values once,' Paxton said Tuesday in response to the announcement. 'Now it's time for Texas voters to say no to your vision and values once more.' Allred tried to position himself as a moderate in last year's race and made protecting abortion rights a centerpiece of his campaign. His supporters included Texas women who had serious pregnancy complications after the state's abortion ban took effect. But his campaign drew criticism early on from some Democrats who grew restless with Allred's strategy of not packing his schedule with raucous rallies or investing more in smaller corners of Texas, including cities along the border with Mexico. In the end, Texas Democrats' streak of losses in statewide races continued while Republicans kept making gains along the predominately Hispanic border with Mexico, which had long been a Democratic stronghold. Allred played four seasons in the NFL, all with the Tennessee Titans, after being undrafted out of Baylor University. He entered Congress after flipping a Republican district in Dallas in 2018. Former astronaut Terry Virts also entered the U.S. Senate race as a Democratic candidate. Looming over the GOP primary between Cornyn and Paxton is whether and when President Donald Trump will make an endorsement. In April, Trump praised both candidates and said he would make a decision later.
San Francisco Chronicle
14 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Greece, EU to press Libya on migrant crossings as Mediterranean numbers surge
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The European Union 's commissioner for migration says Europe will take a 'firm' approach with authorities in Libya following a spike in illegal migration across the Mediterranean. Commissioner Magnus Brunner plans to travel to Libya next week with government representatives from Greece, Italy and Malta, seeking tougher measures from Libyan authorities to stop boats carrying migrants from leaving for Europe. 'That is actually a question which bothers us quite a lot at the moment. Libya is, of course, at the top of the agenda, and we're traveling together to Libya next week because we have to be fast, I think, and firm,' Brunner said Tuesday at a conference in Athens. Brunner, who discussed the upcoming visit at a meeting with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, said the delegation would meet with representatives from both the United Nations-recognized government in western Libya and a rival authority in the east. Greece recently announced plans to send warships to international waters in the region following a surge in crossings from Libya to the southern Greek island of Crete — a more perilous route than the more frequently used passage between Turkey and nearby Greek islands. In 2023, hundreds died when the fishing trawler Adriana, carrying migrants from Libya to Italy, sank off Greek waters. ___
