Ukraine early today staged a large attack on Russia hours after Vladimir Putin snubbed Volodymyr Zelensky’s call for face-to-face talks to finish the war.
The Kremlin dictator, 73, accused his adversary of ‘rudeness’ in alluding to his ‘old age’ in an open letter.
Zelensky had also warned Putin of the chance of a coup to oust him if he fails to halt the war as a consequence of rising dissent in his ruling circle.
But Putin — speaking on the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum — bluntly refused talks and as a substitute issued a Stalin-style rallying call to his troops currently losing ground within the conflict.
‘We should always not address the creator of this letter [Volodymyr Zelensky]….but fairly our soldiers on the contact line.
‘The entire country is watching you; the entire country is pleased with you and hoping for you. Work, brothers,’ he told them.
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But as a substitute it was Russia that was massively on fire today after a barrage of Ukrainian strikes highlighting Kyiv’s growing confidence in taking the war to their enemy.
An enormous naval ammunition depot at 81263 military unit on the 7082nd Technical Mine and Torpedo Base was ablaze and detonating in Leningrad region following a direct hit.
A serious Category 1 alert over exploding ‘hazardous’ explosives was issued with a lockdown ordered in St Petersburg.
‘I ask St Petersburg residents to remain of their homes and never go outside,’ demanded governor Alexander Beglov.
‘There could also be disruptions to mobile web. Information concerning the elimination of the air threat will probably be provided later.’
It was immediately unclear if Putin was still within the war-hit city after his appearance on the forum on Friday.
He has access to bunkers in St Petersburg, his hometown.
The attacks made a mockery of his claim to be winning the war.
For the second time in three days, Ukraine also hit Kronstadt, Putin’s naval port near St Petersburg where fire was seen early today at a key military training facility.
Unconfirmed reports said submarines had been hit at Kronstadt, HQ of the Russian Baltic Fleet.
The V. A. Fock Institute of Physics in Petrodvorets [Peterhof] was also hit by a drone with dramatically skimmed trees before exploding.
Capital Moscow was forced to make use of air defences to fend off multiple Ukrainian drones.
Individually, a large inferno ignited on the Poltava oil depot in Ust-Labinsk, Krasnodar region, with a blaze covering 54,000 square feet.
A mystery fire at an oil refinery in Tyumen, western Siberia, was not confirmed as a Ukrainian strike.
The aim of this strike seemed to be to deepen a crisis which is seeing growing Russian fuel rationing and massively hampering efforts to provide Crimea and other occupied territory.
Latest strikes on Hell’s Highway – the so-called Novorossiya trunk road through annexed Ukraine – have caused carnage on this key route where Kyiv now claims ‘fire control’ as a consequence of drone attacks and mines.
The Putin regime has been forced to ban the transport of youngsters and civilian cars on the this P-280 route and the P-150 Highway.
A rerouting of planes in southern Russia added to the chaos for tourists in search of to achieve and leave the Crimean peninsula.
Ukrainian drones also hit the Research Institute of Marine Thermal Engineering in St. Petersburg, say reports.
That is Russia’s key location for developing torpedo armaments and power plants for underwater naval weapons.
Occupied Black Sea port and resort Mariupol was also ablaze today after Ukrainian strikes following Putin’s snub.
In recent days, Ukraine has destroyed seven ships from Putin’s navy, FSB security service, and shadow fleet of sanctions-busting vessels.
Ukraine said overnight it downed 249 of 272 drones sent by Russia.
Zelensky’s plea to Putin to carry talks to finish the war was seen as aimed more at figures in his circle growing bored with the conflict than the implacable dictator.
Intelligence suggests powerbrokers near Putin could in time pressure him to have interaction in negotiations to freeze the conflict.
Because the Ukrainian strikes were launched, Zelensky, 48, said of Putin’s refusal to speak: ‘Unfortunately, the Russian side is again selecting war – everyone heard today’s response.
‘A weak response. He just doesn’t wish to end the war.
‘I believe many on the planet were upset by this response.
‘He doesn’t want to alter anything and doesn’t wish to admit that his war is just pleasing to him and people who are being profitable from it – they were all very [much] smiling today.
‘So, there needs to be less money in Russia and more pressure on Russia.’
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