Russia and Ukraine Launch Reciprocal Massive Air Strikes

In a sharp escalation between July 5 and 6, 2026, Russia and Ukraine conducted reciprocal long-range aerial campaigns. Volodymyr Zelenskyy launched what he termed long-range sanctions, deploying drones to strike Russian oil refineries in Yaroslavl and St. Petersburg, Baltic Sea ports at Vysotsk and Ust-Luga, and the Kronstadt Marine Plant. These strikes caused significant revenue losses and fuel shortages in Russia, prompting Vladimir Putin to sign tax code amendments to support the domestic fuel market. Ukrainian forces also targeted Crimean energy grids, causing widespread blackouts in Sevastopol.

Russia retaliated with a massive assault on Kyiv and surrounding regions, deploying 68 missiles and 351 drones on July 6. The barrage killed between 11 and 22 people and wounded over 100, destroying residential high-rises in the Podilskyi and Darnytskyi districts. Ukrainian officials reported that 29 ballistic missiles struck their targets without interception due to a critical global shortage of PAC-2 and PAC-3 Patriot missiles. Additional strikes hit the Zhulyansky Machine-Building Plant Vizar in Vyshneve, causing toxic smoke and the evacuation of over 600 residents.

The escalation occurred as world leaders prepared for a NATO summit in Ankara, Türkiye. President Donald Trump held a 90-minute call with Vladimir Putin to discuss peace before the summit. Meanwhile, Zelenskyy urgently appealed to the U.S. and European allies for more interceptor missiles, arguing that keeping stockpiles in warehouses encourages Russian terror against civilians. In response to the proximity of Russian aviation, Poland scrambled fighter jets and placed air defenses on high alert.