Drone commander Robert Brovdi said attacks have hit Tuapse, Primorsk, Ust-Luga, Perm and Chelyabinsk, reaching up to 2,000km and prompting Moscow to omit military hardware from Victory Day.
He said the campaign targets oil exports, air defences and military assets to weaken Russia’s economy and combat power, with ports within range handling about 100 million tonnes of oil worth $100bn annually.
Brovdi said drones now cause 80% of battlefield destruction, while Ukraine also reports recent tactical gains; however, he warned victory remains distant and any pause would let President Vladimir Putin regroup.
With its economy under drone assault, how long can Russia's war machine run before its 'blood dollars' finally run dry?
Is Ukraine's drone doctrine the new face of warfare, or will Russia's conventional might adapt and overcome this tech insurgency?
May 2026: Ukraine’s Long-Range Flamingo Missiles Sever Russia’s War Economy and Defense
Overview
In early May 2026, Ukraine launched coordinated long-range strikes using domestically produced Flamingo missiles, severely damaging key Russian facilities like the Kirishi oil refinery and the VNIIR-Progress plant, which supports missile navigation systems. These attacks disrupted Russia's fuel production and weapons supply, contributing to a significant economic toll estimated at over $21 billion. The strikes also exposed vulnerabilities in Russian defenses, highlighted by a drone attack near the Kremlin. In response, Russia intensified missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities, rejecting ceasefire efforts and escalating threats. Supported cautiously by NATO, Ukraine’s deep strike campaign forms a strategic effort to weaken Russia’s war capacity and complicate peace negotiations amid ongoing conflict.