Hours before Putin’s unilaterally declared three-day Victory Day ceasefire is expected to go into effect (starting May 8), Ukraine has launched a huge cross-border drone attack on Russia which has reportedly unleashed air traffic and flight chaos in an around Moscow, as well as other regions.
Russian state media has said several Russian airlines were forced to cancel and reroute dozens of flights late Tuesday into Wednesday, amid off-and-on airport closures and flight stoppages. Russia’s anti-air defense systems have been engaged in non-stop intercepts of inbound UAVs from Ukraine.
This marks three consecutive days of drone attacks targeting the capital, at a sensitive moment the Kremlin is preparing to host dozens of world leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the end of WW2.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, are also expected. Venezuela’s Maduro is also in Moscow, where he’s already met with President Putin.
“Aviation authorities grounded flights at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo, and Zhukovsky airports, as well as in the cities of Nizhny Novgorod, Kirov, Yaroslavl, Kazan,” RT confirms.
The same outlet is now saying the last hours have seen the largest drone attack against Russian soil in history…
Russia thwarts LARGEST drone attack in history — hours before proposed ceasefire period
524 Ukrainian drones, 5 Neptune missiles, 6 JDAM bombs & 2 HIMARS rockets intercepted in just 24 hours https://t.co/P4NWLOUyiT pic.twitter.com/phEfHCkf43
— RT (@RT_com) May 7, 2025
Apparently hundreds of drones were sent. Moscow has been directly targeted once again, with Mayor Sergey Sobyanin announcing the military intercepted nearly 20 inbound drones on the capital over the last half-day.
Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency has described of the flight chaos, “The restrictions were imposed to ensure the safety of civil aircraft flights.”
The Kremlin has said that Putin’s ceasefire offer remains in force, but that the Russian military will undertake the appropriate response if Ukraine doesn’t abide by it. Russian officials have condemned Zelensky for appearing to directly threaten Victory Day parades, such as the main televised events in the Red Square.
Collapse at Russian airports: canceled flights and crowds of people
Dozens of flights have been delayed at Russian airports due to drone attacks.
The airline Pobeda announced it is canceling some flights on May 6 and 7 because of restrictions imposed at several Russian… pic.twitter.com/avKoonSnVg
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) May 7, 2025
A fresh statement from Putin’s spokesman has described the following:
The Russian military is doing everything necessary to ensure that the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory is held in a calm and peaceful atmosphere, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
“The Kiev regime continues to demonstrate its true nature, its propensity for terrorist actions. Special services and our military are taking all necessary measures to ensure that the celebration of the Great Victory takes place in a calm, stable, and peaceful atmosphere,” he said.
But it looks like major disruptions are already happening, including drones fired at hit military facilities and airbases, also resulting in forced school closures and internet outages in various provinces.
Key infrastructure inside has Russia has been struck…
Ukrainian drones penetrated deep into Russian territory overnight, striking the country’s largest fiber-optic cable plant.
The facility plays a crucial role in Russia’s production of fiber-optic drones. pic.twitter.com/zeM0SM59fV
— Pekka Kallioniemi (@P_Kallioniemi) May 7, 2025
Newsweek writes, “Drone attacks caused internet outages in Russia’s Tula, Yaroslavl and Tver regions, where people have complained of disruptions in phone coverage and ATMs, according to the Telegram channel Ostorozhno Novosti, although there are no reports of casualties.”
Russia has at the same time continued deadly strikes on Ukraine, but there are growing fears a larger attack could be unleashed on Kiev, in retaliation for these drone assaults ahead of Russia’s main national civic holiday.
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