Ukraine-Russia war latest: Huge blast at key airbase for Russian nuclear bombers after Ukrainian drone strike
Ukraine has launched a major drone assault on an airbase deep inside Russia that is key to the relentless missile attacks against Ukrainian cities by Vladimir Putin’s forces.
The strike on the Soviet-era Engels airfield, which houses a number of Russia’s nuclear-capable heavy bombers and stores of cruise missiles, sparked a huge explosion and multiple fires.
Video footage showed the fire from the blast spreading to nearby cottages, before a state of emergency was declared in the area, about 450 miles from Moscow. Ukraine has repeatedly sought to hit the Engels base, across the three years of Russia’s invasion.
The blast came after Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia’s continued strikes on Ukraine show their “true attitude towards peace” in the wake of another 170 drones being launched at targets across the country.
The Ukrainian president is briefing a summit of EU leaders on the contents of a phone call with Donald Trump on Wednesday, Meanwhile, the UK is hosting a closed meeting of senior military leaders from more than 20 countries, as they draw up plans for a proposed peacekeeping force for Ukraine.
