Moscow Pledges Retaliatory Strikes on Ukraine Following Massive Drone Attacks

Kremlin's official spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that President Vladimir Putin clearly outlined his position regarding drone attacks on Russian territory. According to him, such actions will not go unanswered.

“Our president made it clear that no one can just ‘fool around with drones’ here in Russia. If you act like a hooligan, you’ll get hit back,” Dmitry Peskov said.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also stated that Russia's retaliatory strikes following Kyiv’s attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure are to be expected.

According to him, Kyiv "knows perfectly well" that Russia has only targeted military facilities and infrastructure used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

“The criminal must be punished, and I assure you, [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky and his junta know exactly why they’re being hit,” he added.

Nearly 300 drones shot down over Russia in one night

Russian air defense forces destroyed 296 drones over Russia overnight, the Defense Ministry reported on May 28.

The drones were shot down over 14 regions, including Moscow. In addition, drones were intercepted in the Bryansk, Belgorod, Vladimir, Voronezh, Ivanovo, Kaluga, Kursk, Oryol, Ryazan, Smolensk, Tver and Tula regions. 

Due to overnight flight restrictions, 62 flights were canceled at Moscow airports, 52 flights were delayed by more than two hours, and 55 aircraft were diverted to alternate airfields — Rosaviatsia (Federal Air Transport Agency) reported.

According to eyewitnesses, a queue formed at the entrance to Vnukovo Airport, and additional lines appeared near check-in counters and ticket offices where passengers could return or exchange tickets.