Ukrainian drones struck a Russian Sopka-2 radar complex in Voronezh Oblast on September 16, damaging the antenna of the long-range surveillance system located more than 170 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, according to ASTRA media outlet.

The attack targeted the tracking radar complex near Garmashevka village in the Kantemirovka district, with one drone detonating and causing damage to the Sopka-2 antenna system, ASTRA reports. Voronezh Oblast Governor Pavel Gusev confirmed the attack occurred but claimed “the drone was destroyed.”

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported shooting down one drone over the region, following its standard practice of announcing successful intercepts.

The Sopka-2 represents a three-coordinate radar system capable of surveillance within a 450-kilometer radius, designed to detect aircraft and determine their range and altitude. The complex operates in all weather conditions, including winds up to 40 meters per second and temperatures as low as -40°C, according to technical specifications.

The strike follows a pattern of Ukrainian forces targeting Russian radar installations. Days earlier, Ukrainian drones destroyed a Russian RLK-1 “Navigation of the South” radar complex in Rostov Oblast, deployed at a former air defense military unit.

Ukrainian Defense Forces have intensified strikes against Russian radar stations in recent months, seeking to degrade radar coverage in specific areas, particularly around temporarily occupied Crimea. On September 5, Ukrainian drone operators struck Russian air defense radars “Podlyot” and “Nebo-M” on the peninsula.

The Sopka-2 operates as an S-band ground-based air surveillance radar with a range of approximately 450 kilometers, according to manufacturer specifications. The system serves to collect, consolidate and analyze data on air situation awareness for Russian military operations.

The attack demonstrates the expanding reach of Ukrainian drone capabilities, with the strike occurring at significant distance from the border and targeting critical radar infrastructure used for early warning and air defense coordination.

Polish authorities scrambled fighter jets and suspended operations at Lublin Airport on Saturday after reports of Russian drones in Ukrainian regions near the Polish border.

The incident comes after a wave of Russian drones entered Poland on 10 September, prompting NATO to review its eastern defenses. 

“Due to the threat of drone strikes in Ukrainian regions bordering Poland, military aircraft have been deployed in our airspace,” the Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces said on Facebook. 

“Polish and allied aircraft are operating in our airspace, while ground-based air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have been placed on the highest state of readiness,” the statement continued.

The Operational Command said that the measures are preventive, aimed at ensuring the safety of Polish airspace and protecting citizens near areas under threat. 

NATO is not treating Russia’s deliberate drone incursion into Polish territory as an attack, a NATO source told Reuters. This unprecedented revelation comes after a large overnight operation involving both Polish and NATO aircraft to intercept incoming Russian drones.

Ukraine’s Air Force reported that Russia launched 415 drones and 43 missiles in total during the overnight assault. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says at least eight Shahed explosive drones were “aimed toward Poland.” Calling it “an extremely dangerous precedent for Europe,” he urged a strong, united response from Ukraine’s partners in Europe and the United States.

Ukrainian airspace monitoring channels reported that some of the Russian drones that initially entered Poland later returned to Ukraine.

NATO downplays Russia’s deliberate drone strike on Poland

Despite clear indications of intent, NATO is not treating the airspace violation as an act of aggression, a source within the Alliance told Reuters. The source added that initial indications suggested an intentional incursion of six to ten Russian drones overnight on 10 September. NATO radars tracked the drones, and a coordinated operation involving Polish F-16s, Dutch F-35s, Italian AWACS surveillance planes, and mid-air refueling aircraft was launched.

“It was the first time NATO aircraft have engaged potential threats in allied airspace,” the source said.

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Poland shoots down Russian drones, closes 4 airports in “unprecedented” border violation

European leaders condemn Russia and express solidarity with Poland

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the drone strikes as “a reckless and unprecedented violation of Poland and Europe’s airspace.” Speaking to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, she declared full European solidarity with Poland and announced a new Qualitative Military Edge program to boost Ukrainian defense capabilities.

French President Emmanuel Macron labeled the airspace breach “simply unacceptable.” In a post on X, he promised to raise the issue with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, stating, “We will not compromise on the security of the Allies.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called Russia’s drone attack “extremely reckless” and said it highlighted “Putin’s blatant disregard for peace.” He confirmed direct communication with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and thanked NATO and Polish forces for their swift response.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said that early indications suggested the drone entries into Polish territory were intentional.

Poland details the scale of airspace violation and defensive actions

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said 19 drones entered Polish airspace overnight, with many of those flying in from Belarus. According to Tusk, four were probably shot down, with the last interception occurring at 6:45 a.m. Poland’s military command stated that more than 10 drones had been tracked and that those posing a threat were neutralized.

The military described the repeated violations as “an act of aggression.” Airports in Warsaw, Lublin, and two other cities were closed during the threat. Polish authorities urged residents in Podlaskie, Mazowieckie, and Lublin regions to remain indoors. NATO air command and Dutch F-35s provided assistance throughout the operation.

Czechia and Lithuania express alarm, call out Russian provocation

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said the incident was “a test of the defense capabilities of NATO countries.” He called it deliberate and said Putin’s regime “systematically probes how far it can go.” Fiala reaffirmed Czech solidarity with Poland and warned against voices downplaying Russia’s aggression.

Lithuanian foreign minister Kestutis Budrys, however, told Reuters that there was no confirmed evidence yet that the drone strike was intentional. However, he stressed that Russia remains responsible for keeping its drones out of NATO territory.

Belarus and Moscow close ranks and deny responsibility

Russia and Belarus, longtime anti-Ukrainian allies, dismissed the accusations. Russia’s chargé d’affaires in Poland, Andrey Ordash, was summoned by the Polish foreign ministry. He told Russia’s RIA state news agency, “We see the accusations as groundless,” claiming Poland had presented no evidence linking the Russian drones to Russia.

Belarusian Chief of the General Staff Major General Pavel Muraveiko attempted to shift blame for Russia’s deliberate attack on Poland toward Ukraine. He claimed Belarus had allegedly shot down drones that had strayed into its airspace due to Ukrainian electronic interference. Without specifying their origin, he claimed that both Poland and Lithuania had been warned about the drones’ approach.

One person died and nine others were injured in a Russian combined strike on Ukraine during the night of 10 September, according to regional officials across multiple oblasts.

The attack involved 415 strike drones of Shahed, Gerbera and other types, and 43 missiles of ground, air and sea-based launch, according to Ukraine’s Air Force. Ukrainian air defenses managed to neutralize 413 targets – 386 Russian drones and 27 cruise/aviation missiles Kh-101/Kalibr/Kh-59(69). About 16 missiles and 21 drones hit their targets across 17 locations.

The fatality occurred in Zhytomyr Oblast, where a local resident died in hospital from burns of varying degrees, reports the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (DSNS). At least five people were injured in Zhytomyr Oblast – four in Zhytomyr city and one in Berdychiv, the DSNS added.

In Khmelnytskyi Oblast, the attack injured three people, destroyed a garment factory and damaged destroyed a gas station, transport, and broke windows. “All injured are receiving medical care,” Tyurin said.

Vinnytsia Oblast saw damage to civilian industrial infrastructure and residential buildings, with one person hospitalized in stable condition, reports first deputy head of the regional administration Natalia Zabolotna. About 30 residential buildings were damaged in the oblast. Windows were broken, roofs and adjacent territories were damaged, she said. Twenty-six drones and 11 cruise missiles reportedly operated in Vinnytsia’s airspace during the attack.

In Cherkasy Oblast, two Russian missiles and about ten drones were neutralized, with no casualties reported but infrastructure damage sustained, according to oblast governor Ihor Taburets. The blast wave partially destroyed a barn in Zolotonosha district, killing two cows and causing a fire, while also damaging windows and roofs in five houses and a car.

Volyn Oblast recorded “several dozen Russian drones” overhead, resulting in a fire at one production facility from debris of a downed target, governor Ivan Rudnytsky said. There are reportedly no dead or wounded.

Lviv came under attack from approximately 60 Russian Shaheds and over 10 missiles, but air defenses prevented casualties, according to Mayor Andriy Sadovyi. “Thanks to our air defense forces for preventing disaster. There are no casualties, no destruction of housing stock. There was debris hitting a civilian warehouse on Aviatsiina street. We are now assessing the damage,” Sadovyi stated.

DSNS psychologists provided assistance to 26 people, including three children, in the affected areas.

During the massive overnight attack on Ukraine, Poland’s Operational Command also confirmed that Russian drones violated the country’s airspace.

This marks the first serious attack on a NATO member country since Russia’s full-scale invasion began against Ukraine. Warsaw called this the incident an “act of aggression,” and the country closed four airports.

Seven Iranian-designed Russian Shahed drones struck the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia on 6 September evening, leaving fifteen people wounded and reducing a kindergarten to rubble.

The attack unfolded around 9 p.m. as residents heard the familiar buzz of approaching drones. Viktor watched from his second-floor window as one headed straight for his neighborhood.

“I saw the drone flying, I thought it would fly straight into the roof,” he told Suspilne Zaporizhzhia.

The blast wave threw his wife from their home. Viktor found her unconscious under the door and dragged her to safety before their children rushed her to the hospital. Windows and doors throughout his house were blown out, his barn burned down, and a massive crater now marks his garden.

“The blast wave threw her out of the house. I found her under the door and dragged her to the garage, and the children took her to the hospital,” he shared.

Ivan Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration, reported that four people required hospitalization: three women and one man injured, all in moderate condition. But the kindergarten bore the worst damage—80% of the building destroyed.

Ukrainian air defenses managed to intercept some drones before they reached their targets. The ones that got through also damaged six apartment buildings, four private houses, and critical infrastructure.

The Zaporizhzhia Regional Prosecutor’s Office opened a criminal investigation, confirming the weapons as Shahed-type strike drones—the same Iranian-designed aircraft Russia has used in hundreds of attacks across Ukraine.

Earlier on 5 September, Russian forces killed a 56-year-old woman with an FPV drone in the same region. Over the past 24 hours, Russian forces launched 476 strikes across 15 settlements in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, damaging homes and farm buildings.

Emergency services are preparing repair work including window boarding and roof restoration once the air raid alert is lifted.

A massive Russian drone attack left 29,000 people without power in Odesa Oblast on the morning of 31 August, regional officials said.

The coastal city of Chornomorsk, just south of Odesa, suffered the most damage, oblast governor Oleh Kiper reported on Telegram. Critical infrastructure in the area is currently running on generators.

DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, reported that four of its facilities in Odesa Oblast were hit during the overnight attack.

Private houses and administrative buildings were also damaged. One person was reported injured.

Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia attacked Ukraine with 142 drones, 126 of which were shot down. 

The major coastal city of Odesa is a regular target for Russian aerial assaults, which have repeatedly damaged infrastructure and disrupted daily life. These attacks have caused power outages, property damage, injuries, and deaths, highlighting the ongoing risk faced by residents.

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Major pipeline explosion halts Moscow fuel supplies after Ryazan blast

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Frontline report: Ukrainian drones strike 1,300 kilometers deep into Russia, torching Shahed storage depots in Tatarstan. The Yelabuga factory has become too dangerous to staff, with few technicians willing to work at Russia’s largest Shahed assembly plant under repeated Ukrainian strikes.

FT: West plans 3-layer defense system for post-war Ukraine with NATO forces. Approximately 10 countries are prepared to send troops to Ukrainian territory after the war ends with Britain has proposed deploying Typhoon fighter jets in western Ukraine

Intelligence and technology

Russia builds air defense towers around drone factory as Ukraine deep strikes intensify, partisans report. The Yelabuga facility in Russia’s Tatarstan, which produces over 5,000 Geran-2 drones monthly, has sustained repeated attacks throughout 2025.

International

Yermak, Kyslytsia, Umerov to represent Ukraine in New York talks with Witkoff.

Most Germans believe that Ukraine can cede territory for peace – poll

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Trump envoy: Russia submits Donetsk peace plan Ukraine “may not take”. A Russian peace proposal involving Donetsk Oblast sits before Ukrainian negotiators as President Trump continues pressing both sides toward a settlement.

US envoy sets Ukraine talks for this week, reveals daily Russia contact. A Ukrainian delegation will meet with US envoy Steve Witkoff in New York this week, as the official revealed he maintains daily contact with Russian officials and believes a peace agreement is “already on the table.”

Ukrainians contributed $ 5 bn to Poland’s budget in 2024 as refugee protection faces uncertainty. New figures reveal 1.55mn Ukrainians generated $5 bn for Poland’s budget in 2024, coinciding with President Nawrocki’s veto of refugee protection extension.

Humanitarian and social impact

Ukrainian woman who fled war in Ukraine was stabbed to death in the US. Her suspected killer was arrested but the cause of the murder is still unknown.

Russian drones target civilian energy infrastructure across six Ukrainian regions causing power outages. Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy described the strikes as “another act of energy terrorism aimed at the civilian population.”

Ukrainian POW returns from 7-year Russian imprisonment with his cat

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Russian forces kill civilian, injure three in morning attacks on Kherson. An 81-year-old woman died and three men sustained injuries ranging from burns to traumatic brain injury during Russian attacks on Kherson

Political and legal developments

Scandal-hit Odesa chemical giant goes up for sale. Privatization aims to restore facility crucial for feeding Ukraine and the world.

Ukraine allows men aged 18-22 to travel abroad amid conflict over army recruitment versus demographic crisis. Military commanders argue the country cannot afford to let healthy young men leave when frontline units desperately need fresh recruits, while civilians contend that travel restrictions have accelerated family emigration and severed homeland ties for an entire generation of Ukrainian youth abroad.

New developments

Ukraine’s western regions see tourism boom. Tourism tax revenues surge 35% as mountain resorts and cultural cities defy wartime expectations.

Minneapolis school shooter wrote “I am terrorist” and “Kill yourself” in Russian on weapon magazines and listened to Russian rappers. Westman mixed desperate Russian phrases with violent English fantasies, writing “I have had thoughts about mass murder for a long time” before targeting his former elementary school where his mother worked and killing two children.

Read our earlier daily review here.

Ukrainian drones struck several targets across Russia in the early hours of 28 August, causing fires at two oil refineries and disrupting rail traffic. Confirmed attacks hit the Kuibyshevsky refinery in the city of Samara about 1,000 km from the frontlines, the Afipsky refinery in Krasnodar Krai around 300 km behind the lines, and a locomotive depot in Petrov Val, Volgograd Oblast. A railway station in Samara Oblast was also reportedly targeted, leading to service delays. 

Strike hits Samara’s Kuibyshevsky refinery

According to Russian Telegram news channel Astra and Ukrainian Exilenova+, a drone attack caused fires at the Kuibyshevsky oil refinery in Samara in the early hours of 28 August. Both channels shared footage of the attack and the subsequent fires.

Local residents began reporting UAV flights over the city and explosions near the facility shortly after 03:00. According to both channels, initial confusion led many locals to believe the Novokuibyshevsky refinery had been hit again after an attack weeks ago. 

Exilenova+ posted follow-ups referencing public speculation about the number of drones involved, writing that “the excited local crowd counted 17 drones, lost count.” The same channel later claimed, without confirmation, that both the Kuibyshevsky and Novokuibyshevsky refineries had been struck.

In response to the attack, the governor of Samara Oblast announced temporary flight restrictions at Samara airport and mobile internet outages “for citizens’ safety.” Emergency services and air defense systems were reportedly activated during the incident.

Afipsky refinery also targeted in Krasnodar Krai

Exilenova+ also shared footage of fires at on the Afipsky oil refinery in southern Russia’s Krasnodar Krai. Russian authorities confirmed the attack, but attributed damage to “falling drone debris” that caused a fire at one of the refinery’s units in the settlement of Afipsky.

The attack affected a gas and condensate processing unit, previously targeted in earlier strikes, according to Exilenova’s geolocation of the footage. The channel geolocated and published video evidence of the fire. Emergency crews were deployed to the scene, with 21 personnel and eight vehicles extinguishing the 20-square-meter blaze. Officials stated there were no casualties.

Petrov Val train depot attacked again

The city of Petrov Val in Volgograd Oblast experienced a repeat drone strike, just five days after a previous attack on 23 August. Exilenova+ shared videos showing fires at the facility, claiming the attack targeted the TChE-7 locomotive depot. According to Astra, a drone impact led to a fire at one of the technical buildings of the depot in the city. Governor Bocharov stated that the fire was quickly extinguished and that there were no injuries.

Rail traffic disrupted in Samara Oblast

In addition to refinery and depot attacks, drones reportedly also targeted Kryazh station in Samara Oblast. Astra quoted Kuybyshev Railway as saying that drone debris damaged the contact network between Kryazh and Lipiahy stations.

The incident led to train disruptions: six long-distance and four suburban trains were delayed, with the maximum delay reaching 2 hours and 14 minutes. Three suburban trains were canceled.

Russia claims 102 drones downed overnight

Despite the widespread damage, Russia’s Ministry of Defense claimed its air defenses destroyed 102 Ukrainian drones overnight. According to the ministry, 22 drones were intercepted over the Black Sea, 21 each over Rostov and Samara oblasts, 18 over Krasnodar Krai, 11 over occupied Crimea, three each over Voronezh and Saratov oblasts, two over Volgograd Oblast, and one over the Sea of Azov.

As always, the Russian ministry’s claims have not been independently verified.

Russian authorities have constructed a Pantsir air defense tower adjacent to a drone manufacturing facility in Yelabuga, according to the partisan movement ATESH, which claims the measure reflects damage from Ukrainian strikes.

ATESH agents working at the factory documented the defensive installation near the facility, the group announced via Telegram on 26 August.

The organization characterized the construction as evidence that Ukrainian drone attacks have already inflicted damage on the plant.

Ukrainian forces conducted their most recent drone strike against the Yelabuga facility on 25 August. The facility has faced multiple Ukrainian attacks throughout 2025, with documented strikes occurring in April, June, and August.

The Elabuga installation represents part of a broader pattern across Russia. The group’s agents have documented similar tower constructions in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, and other cities. These structures feature modules designed for Pantsir air defense systems and are being erected to counter Ukrainian drone operations.

ATESH maintains that these defensive measures will prove insufficient against future attacks.

“The Kremlin can build new towers and cover factories with ‘Pantsirs,’ but this won’t save them from retribution,” the group stated, adding that “for every ‘Shahed’ launched at Ukraine, a just strike will come.”

The organization has called for intelligence regarding similar defensive installations, air defense systems, or military facilities in Russia and occupied territories, offering compensation for reliable information.

Yelabuga factory allegedly produces more than 5000 drones monthly

In July, Russian state media broadcast aired two propaganda films showcasing Geran-2 drone production and deployment capabilities, particularly at the Yelabuga manufacturing complex, positioned over 1,300 km (807 miles) from Ukrainian territory. 

Intelligence reports indicated the facility manufactures more than 5,000 Geran-2 units monthly, with 18,000 drones completed during the first six months of 2025.

The propaganda rollout followed Russia’s record-breaking single-day bombardment on July 9, when Moscow deployed 741 drones and missiles in a 24-hour period.