As the Ukraine war approaches its third year, Russia claims to have shot down 120 Ukrainian drones over 12 of its regions, including Moscow, in one of the largest attacks of this kind on its territory since the conflict began.
A refinery and a fuel depot in the Russian region of Ryazan and an electronic components factory for missiles in the Bryansk region were among the damages caused by Ukrainian drones.
Meanwhile, a Russian drone attack in the Kiev region killed three people and injured at least two others.
Russia and Ukraine are intensifying hostilities to gain advantages in possible ceasefire negotiations.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) state that North Korea is accelerating "additional deployments in response to the high number of casualties and prisoners of war captured."
Four months ago, Pyongyang sent about 11,000 soldiers to the front and has been supplying a large amount of artillery and other conventional weapons to Russia. According to South Korean intelligence, about 300 North Korean soldiers have died, and around 2,700 have been injured on the front lines.
Meanwhile, Europe is discussing whether to send troops to secure peace in Ukraine in case of a ceasefire, which the new White House occupant, Donald Trump, has committed to achieve, now within 100 days (after promising it in 24 hours), while announcing his intention to meet with Zelenski and Putin, as well as planning to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Russia Claims to Have Shot Down 120 Ukrainian Drones
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated on Friday that it had shot down 120 Ukrainian drones over 12 of its regions, including Moscow, in one of the largest attacks of this kind on its territory since the conflict began.
The ministry said in a statement that the air defense forces had "intercepted and destroyed" 120 drones, most of them over Russian regions near the Ukrainian borders, but also up to the capital Moscow, as well as a 121st in Crimea, the annexed peninsula in 2014.
Russian media reported damages in several regions.
Hungary Urges Ukraine to Resume Gas Transit Ahead of EU Sanctions Extension
Hungary wants the European Union to convince Ukraine to resume gas transit from Russia to Europe, said Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Friday, pointing to a tough debate as the EU intends to extend its sanctions against Russia next week, Reuters reports.
Hungary has not yet decided whether to support the extension of sanctions scheduled for the end of this month. The EU renews sanctions every six months and requires the unanimity of its 27 member countries.
Orban, whose government has maintained closer economic and political relations with Moscow than other EU countries, reiterated his criticism of the sanctions, stating that they have caused Hungary a financial loss of 19 billion euros (19.9 billion dollars).
"Now the issue of extending the sanctions is on the agenda, and I have pulled the brake and asked EU leaders to understand that this cannot continue," Orban said on state radio.
Russian Drone Attack Kills 3 People in Ukrainian Region of Kiev
Russia launched a barrage of drones in a nighttime attack in Ukraine on Friday, killing three civilians and damaging residential and commercial buildings, authorities said, Reuters reports.
The Interior Ministry said that drone debris killed two men and a woman in the central Kiev region, with another person injured.
Ukrainian air forces stated that anti-aircraft defense units and mobile drone hunting groups shot down 25 of the 58 Russian drones, with another 27 "lost," referring to Kiev's use of electronic equipment to redirect them.
As the war approaches the three-year mark, Russia has intensified its aerial attacks on Ukraine, sending dozens of drones almost every night.
Ukrainian officials have said that Russian forces launched over 7,000 drones in 2024, at least double the number in 2023. Most were shot down or diverted by electronic warfare, but many reached their targets.
Risk of Armed Clash Between Nuclear Powers Increasing
Sergei Shoigu, Secretary of Russia's Security Council and former Defense Minister, has warned that the risk of an armed clash between nuclear powers is increasing, TASS state news agency reported on Friday.
The growing geopolitical rivalry among the world's major powers increases the risk of a confrontation, accusing NATO's military alliance of increasing activities near Russia's eastern flank and Belarus, practicing offensive and defensive scenarios there, TASS reports, as Reuters replicates.
Ukraine Attacks Russian Refinery, Fuel Depot, and Missile Factory
Ukraine attacked a refinery and fuel depot in the Russian region of Ryazan and an electronic components factory for missiles in the Bryansk region of the Russian Federation last night, as reported by Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Disinformation Center of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, on his social media, according to Efe.
"Many explosions in different regions of Russia," Kovalenko wrote in one of his messages, stating that the attacked refinery is one of the most important in the Russian oil industry.
"It is located in the Ryazan region and plays a significant role in supplying fuel, both civilian and to the Russian military-industrial complex," he added, explaining that the refinery supplies gas to Russian planes and diesel and other products to Russian tanks, planes, and ships.
Kovalenko also reported a new attack on the 'Kremni' factory in the Bryansk region, which produces microchips for missiles, drones, and other Russian military technologies and had been previously attacked by Ukraine.
Ukraine Attacks Russia, Including Moscow, with Over 120 Drones, According to Defense
Ukraine attacked Russian territory last night, including Moscow, with more than 120 drones, in the largest aerial incursion since the beginning of the year, as reported today by the Russian Ministry of Defense on its Telegram channel, Efe reports.
The anti-aircraft defenses shot down a total of 123 drones over thirteen Russian regions during the night and early morning, one of them over the capital, specified the military report.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported the downing of several Ukrainian drones near the capital.
The mayor wrote on his Telegram account that the first drones heading to the capital were destroyed in Kolomna and Ramenskoe, in the Moscow region.
"At the site of their fall, according to preliminary data, there are no damages or casualties," he stated.
A few minutes later, Sobyanin revealed that two other unmanned aircraft were shot down in Podolsk, 40 kilometers south of Moscow.
Subsequently, the mayor wrote about more destroyed drones, this time in a southern suburb of Moscow and a town about 40 kilometers north of the city.
The attack led to the temporary suspension of operations at three airports in the Russian capital.
The same measure was taken by aviation authorities at airports in six other cities in the country: Kazan, Nizhnekamsk, Penza, Samara, Saratov, and Ufa.