Ukraine's Biggest-Ever Drone Strike On Russian Capital Leads To Flight Diversions

In one of the biggest drones strike by Ukraine since start of Russia war, its forces targeted Moscow with a barrage of 32 drones on Sunday, news agency Reuters reported.

No fatalities were reported in the strikes till the preliminary reports emerged. However, one person was said to be injured.

The drone strikes led to the diversion of flights from three of Moscow's major airports, the reports said.

All the 32 drones were shot down by the Russian air defences, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reportedly said. They were intercepted over the Ramenskoye and Kolomensky districts of Moscow, he added.

The three airports where flight operations were affected are those based in Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo and Zhukovo regions of Moscow. After a brief disruption, regular flight operations were resumed at these airports, officials said.

The drone strike assumes significance as Moscow, along with its adjoining parts, is seen as one of the biggest metropolitan areas in Europe. An estimated population of 21 million people reside in the region.

The last major drone strike compared to the latest assault was carried out by Ukraine in September, when its forces targeted Ramenskoye district, located 45 km away from Kremlin, with 20 drones. However, all those drones were shot down by the Russian air defences.

Notably, Russia and Ukraine are locked in a military conflict since early 2022. The war has kept the United States-led North Atlantic Treaty Organisation on the edge, due to the threat of its spillover in other parts of eastern Europe.

Since the war commenced, Washington has rolled out a total of $64.1billion in military assistance to Ukraine, as per the data available with the US Department of State.

Donald Trump, who won the US presidential election earlier this week, was critical about the scale of financial aid to Ukraine during his campaign trail.

Trump promised to end the war immediately after taking charge, but did not share details about his plans to achieve truce between Moscow and Kyiv.