Russia hits Ukrainian cruise missile launch site – MOD (VIDEO)
The Russian military has struck a launch site for Ukraine’s long-range FP-5 Flamingo cruise missiles, the Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. Kiev has used Flamingos in attacks deep inside Russia.
The site was targeted with two Iskander cruise missiles and seven Geran-4 Seeker attack drones, according to the ministry.
“The target has been hit,” it said, adding that the strike triggered a major fire and “a massive fuel spill… burning over an area of approximately 40,000 square meters.”
The MOD also released drone footage purporting to show a massive fire engulfing the launch site after the attack.
In separate strikes, Russian forces also hit Ukrainian drone assembly and storage facilities, according to the ministry.
The Russian military has intensified long-range strikes on targets in Ukraine in response to repeated Ukrainian attacks on civilian and energy infrastructure inside Russia. Moscow has condemned Kiev’s drone and missile strikes, including attacks deep inside Russian territory, as acts of terrorism intended to compensate for Ukrainian setbacks on the battlefield.
Russia maintains that it does not deliberately target civilians and that its strikes are directed at military facilities and infrastructure supporting Ukrainian forces.
Last week, the Russian military struck an industrial facility belonging to Ukrainian weapons manufacturer Fire Point, which produces Flamingo missiles and other weapons. The plant manufactured components for long- and medium-range drones and was also used to assemble and store boosters for the cruise missiles, according to the MOD.
Fire Point has been promoted by Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky during trips to Western countries as the manufacturer of some of the nation’s “most successful” weapons. Over the weekend, a Russian volunteer air-defense unit shot down one of the supposedly state-of-the-art Flamingo missiles with machine-gun fire, according to Kursk Region Governor Aleksandr Khinshtein.
Fire Point has been linked to Zelensky’s former business partner, Timur Mindich, who has been dubbed ‘Zelensky’s wallet’ in Ukraine. Mindich fled the country last year after being named as a key suspect in a major corruption scandal.
