President Zelensky highlighted on Saturday, May 16, the successes of Ukrainian long-range operations that have struck critical military and energy targets up to 1,000 kilometers deep into Russian territory. These attacks, referred to as ‘long-term sanctions’, have reportedly caused significant destruction to valuable hardware, including a Be-200 amphibious aircraft and a Ka-27 naval helicopter.
In a video address on his Telegram channel, Zelensky stated that the strikes represent a just response to Russian aggression. He promised that both the range and frequency of these long-range attacks would continue to increase.
The offensive follows a massive, coordinated assault carried out overnight on Friday by Ukrainian forces, the Security Service (SBU), and the Main Directorate of Intelligence (HUR). According to the commander of the newly established Unmanned Systems, Robert “Madyar” Brovdi, 55 confirmed strikes were conducted on 23 strategic targets in Russia and the occupied territories.
Among the targeted sites were a Tor-M2 air defense system in occupied Luhansk and a Pantsir-S1 air defense system in Crimea. Brovdi noted that these were the 16th and 17th Russian air defense units eliminated just in May.
