Ukraine's Armed Forces have carried out a series of strikes on Russian territory in recent days, particularly in the Volgograd direction. These attacks aim to identify certain gaps in the Russian army's defense systems and damage its military infrastructure. These operations also aim to strike ammunition reserves being prepared by Russia for a war with NATO.
Redaksiya reports that Roman Svitan, a retired colonel and instructor pilot of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, commented on the recent events on "Radio NV." He stated that Ukraine's defense forces have likely created a corridor in the air defense systems on the front lines of the Russian army. Using this corridor, operations have been carried out in the Volgograd direction over the past three days.
According to Svitan, the first strike was on the Kapustin Yar area using "Flamingo" type drones and missiles. Subsequently, the Volgograd oil refinery was struck. It is assumed that these attacks were also carried out using the same corridor. Ivan Kirichevsky, an arms expert, noted that by striking the GRAU (Main Rocket and Artillery Directorate) located in Kotluban, Ukrainian defenders destroyed ammunition reserves that the Russian Federation could be preparing for a war with NATO. He stated that as a result of the attack, "the dynamics of the Russians creating ammunition reserves have become very unfavorable."
Military expert Yevhen Dikiy noted that the Russian Federation stores hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions, of shells in such depots. He stated that after previous attacks, the enemy began to protect such depots. However, air defense systems are designed to combat drones, not cruise missiles. Dikiy emphasized that Kotluban houses the Russian Federation's most powerful GRAU arsenal. This arsenal stores thousands of tons of missiles, explosives, and ammunition, particularly those used in the Volgograd-Rostov chain. The expert noted that after the attack, the Volgograd oil refinery ceased operations. According to him, the refinery could have been attacked, especially with missile weapons, but the primary means of attack were drones.
According to Roman Svitan, over a hundred drones were launched, and the Russians claimed to have shot them down. However, at least several dozen drones penetrated and halted operations at one of the largest oil refineries. Simultaneously, on the night of February 12, likely using the same corridor, missiles attacked the town of Kotluban, located near Volgograd. As a result of this attack, the GRAU arsenal in Kotluban was struck.