{"id":7252,"date":"2026-06-19T06:52:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T06:52:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/7252\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T06:52:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T06:52:16","slug":"ukraines-upgraded-long-range-drones-a-mounting-headache-for-moscow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/7252\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine’s upgraded long-range drones a mounting headache for Moscow"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Ukrainian drones struck an oil tank in Moscow, the blast was so powerful it sent the huge disc-shaped lid soaring into the air like a frisbee.<\/p>\n

It was the second time the refinery had been attacked in three days <\/a>with “several drones” managing to reach the site, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said.<\/p>\n

The refinery, located just 16 kilometres from the Kremlin, was hit in one of Ukraine’s largest attacks on Moscow to date.<\/p>\n

\"Thick<\/p>\n

Thick plumes of smoke with flames rise from an oil refinery following a Ukrainian drone attack. (Reuters: Social media)<\/p>\n

At the start of the war, Ukraine did not have weapons capable of reaching the Russian capital.<\/p>\n

But after continuously developing and evolving mostly locally made long-range drones, it is now reaching deeper into Russian territory.<\/p>\n

The recent attack reportedly involved a mix of propeller-driven drones and jet-powered “missile” drones, which are more powerful and can travel at faster speeds.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kyiv claims its increasing ability to strike targets across Moscow is evidence it is turning the tide of the war.<\/p>\n

Boost in long-range capabilities \u00a0<\/p>\n

At the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine struggled to convince the United States and European allies to provide it with long-range weapons<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many countries were hesitant, wanting to avoid escalating the conflict into a direct confrontation with Russia.<\/p>\n

So Ukraine began boosting the development and production of its own long-range drones and missiles.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

An FP-1 long-range Ukrainian drone at a production facility. (Reuters: Valentyn Ogirenko)<\/p>\n

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence said in 2022 it had the ability to strike at a range of about 630km.<\/p>\n

In April, it said its long-range weapons were now “successfully destroying” Russia’s military equipment “at a distance of about 1,750km”.<\/p>\n

Matthew Sussex, associate professor in strategic studies at Deakin University’s Centre for Future Defence and National Security, said Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities were constantly evolving.<\/p>\n

“They’ve got this multitude of drones that they use,” Dr Sussex told the ABC.<\/p>\n

“It’s estimated that the ones they’re using against Moscow have about 30 kilos worth of explosives, which is very decent.<\/p>\n

“Now there are some more modern types that are jet-propelled that can carry bigger payloads.”\"A<\/p>\n

A long-range Ukrainian Peklo missile drone on display in 2024.\u00a0 (Ukrinform\/NurPhoto via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

‘Missile drone’ makes appearance\u00a0<\/p>\n

In addition to the conventional drones typically used in long-range strikes against Russian targets, local Ukrainian media reported Kyiv had used its jet-powered missile drones during the June 18 attack.<\/p>\n

Some defence analysts said videos circulating online also appeared to show jet-propelled, one-way attack drones were used.<\/p>\n

Jet-propelled drones typically use compact turbojet engines and can be\u00a0launched from ground-based platforms and aircraft.<\/p>\n

Loading…<\/p>\n

Ukraine’s Bar drone, a so-called “drone-missile”, had been cited in reports.<\/p>\n

Dr Sussex said Ukraine unveiled the Bar in April 2025.<\/p>\n

“It’s being referred to as a missile drone, but frankly, every missile is a drone effectively and every drone is a missile,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“It’s effectively a medium-range missile that’s fairly manoeuvrable because it’s got a turbo-jet engine.”<\/p>\n

The Bar flies at about 800km\/h and can carry an estimated payload of between 50kg to 100kg, he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Large<\/p>\n

Ukrainian drones evaded air defences and hit an oil refinery in Moscow.\u00a0 (Reuters: social media)<\/p>\n

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, its air defences downed 555 drones across the country overnight.<\/p>\n

At least 194 drones were intercepted on approach to Moscow.<\/p>\n

Dr Sussex said the volume of drones launched and the mix of different types would have helped scramble Russia’s air defences.<\/p>\n

In addition to striking one of Russia’s largest refineries, which produces more than a third of the Moscow region’s fuel, Ukrainian drones hit a residential building in the town of Zhukovsky.<\/p>\n

The attack also temporarily halted flights from four Moscow airports, leaving more than 500 flights delayed or cancelled.<\/p>\n

Ukraine sends message to civilians<\/p>\n

Moscow has been periodically hit by drones since May 2023, when two of them reached the Kremlin itself, without causing damage.<\/p>\n

Kyiv’s attacks across Russian territory were largely aimed at crippling the oil industry that helps finance Russia’s war effort.<\/p>\n

Ukraine strikes St Petersburg oil terminal before ‘Putin’s Davos’<\/a><\/p>\n

An oil export terminal was hit hours before the Russian president’s annual economic forum got underway.<\/p>\n

But Ukraine has also signalled its intention to send a message to ordinary Russians.<\/p>\n

“One of the most popular questions asked by Muscovites this morning is ‘What is going on?’ I can answer,” Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha posted on X.<\/p>\n

“Your country started a war of aggression against ours. For years, it has been killing our people.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Now that you know what’s going on, ask Putin when he is planning to end it.”<\/p>\n

Konstantin, a local walking near the oil refinery in Moscow’s south-eastern Kapotnya district after it was struck, told AFP he had “never seen anything like it”.<\/p>\n

Valentina, a 29-year-old manager, said she was woken up by the noise.<\/p>\n

“It’s really scary,” she told the news agency.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

People stand in front of an apartment building damaged during a Ukrainian drone attack in the Moscow region.\u00a0 (Reuters: Stringer)<\/p>\n

John Lough, associate fellow of the Chatham House Russia and Eurasia Programme, said the war was starting to hit home for Russian civilians.<\/p>\n

Strike on UNESCO-listed cathedral leaves cultural scar on Ukraine<\/a><\/p>\n

The historic Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra suffered “extensive” damage in an attack Ukraine says was targeted at erasing its cultural heritage and identity.<\/p>\n

“The population is clearly becoming concerned and frustrated by this,” he told ABC Radio National’s AM.<\/p>\n

“In some places in the country where they’ve had repeated drone attacks, people are feeling that they really don’t have adequate defences.<\/p>\n

“Since this war was supposed to improve Russia’s security, I think many people could see there is a big gap between what Putin is saying and what’s actually happening.”<\/p>\n

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack was an “absolutely justified response” to deadly strikes on Kyiv, including one earlier this week on a landmark cathedral and a UNESCO-protected 11th-century monastery<\/a>.<\/p>\n

He said he wanted Russians to put pressure on Mr Putin for the consequences of Europe’s worst conflict since World War II.<\/p>\n

Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the lower house of Russia’s parliament, warned that Moscow would respond by ramping up its strikes.<\/p>\n

“Their action will lead to our counteraction and launching harsher blows, with more powerful weapons,” Mr Volodin said in televised remarks.<\/p>\n

Jim Townsend, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, said the war had been shifting in Ukraine’s favour and it would likely be weighing on the Russian president.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“They [Ukraine] have developed the drone warfare to not only help them on the battlefield against the Russians, but have the long-range strike capability to bring the war to Russia,” he told ABC News Channel.<\/p>\n

“So as more and more Russians see these dark clouds over their cities from burning oil refineries, Putin might be looking for a way out.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Ukrainian drones struck an oil tank in Moscow, the blast was so powerful it sent the huge…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7253,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[3670,704,115,3671,291,38,3669,314,352],"class_list":["post-7252","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-air-strike","tag-conflict","tag-drone","tag-long-range-drones","tag-missiles","tag-moscow","tag-refinery","tag-war","tag-weapons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7252"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7252\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ukraine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}