Ukraine’s Claims on Airfield Attacks Are False, Planes Will Be Restored

The aircraft damaged in the June 1 attacks will be restored, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said.

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org by Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Tu-160M

The aircraft were not completely destroyed – they were damaged, the official noted. Ryabkov also dismissed claims from Ukrainian officials about the effectiveness of the attack, calling them entirely baseless. According to him, "there is nothing remotely close to what Kyiv claims.”

Russia Questions Strategic Bomber Protection

Following the blatant drone attacks on Russian airfields, questions have arisen about why Russia's strategic bombers were left exposed in the open. Military expert and former US Army officer Stanislav Krapivnik pointed out that under the New START treaty (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) between Russia and the US, Moscow was required to keep strategic bombers — designed to carry nuclear weapons — visible to allow constant satellite surveillance by the US. Kyiv appears to have exploited this requirement. Krapivnik, however, questioned why Russia continues to observe a treaty that it has formally suspended.

In contrast, military expert Oleg Shalandin noted that there are generally no shelters for nuclear triad aircraft at airfields. According to him, this is due to the fact that strategic and transport aviation aircraft are in constant operation and rarely remain stationed in one place. Therefore, building large hangars and repeatedly moving the aircraft in and out would be impractical.

This view was challenged by authors of Military Informant Telegram channel who pointed to China as an example. China began constructing shelters for its aircraft, including heavy bombers, back during the 1960s. Many Chinese airbases are located in mountainous regions, but even flatland bases are equipped with hangars to protect aircraft from possible attacks.

West Applauds Ukraine for Airfield Strike

On June 4, UK Defence Secretary John Healey praised Ukraine's drone strikes on Russian airfields. "Hats off to Kyiv for Operation Spider's Web,” he said.

Putin Warns of Inevitable Response in Call with Trump

On the evening of June 4, Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump held a phone call. The Russian leader promised that Moscow would respond to Ukraine's attacks on its airfields.

Russian war correspondent Alexander Kots noted that after the Kremlin issued a warning about an inevitable retaliation, the American president quickly changed the subject, without attempting to dissuade Putin.