Ukraine widens aim at Russia's war economy
Ukraine has stepped up strikes on the Russian factories that make military components and commercial warehouses that move equipment.
Welcome to Views From Above, a newsletter bringing you satellite imagery snapshots of world events. Today, we are looking at Ukraine’s growing strike campaign on the factories and warehouses linked to the Russian war effort.
Ukraine’s long-range strike campaign against Russia has made headlines for targeting the country’s energy facilities and ammunition depots. But lately, Kyiv has increased the number of strikes on a different set of targets: the factories that make components for Russian weapons and the commercial warehouses that move goods throughout the country. The items in these warehouses can include dual-use technology like small drones, navigation equipment, and military gear used by Russian forces in occupied Ukraine.
The facilities Ukraine has targeted feed the war effort in different ways. Examples include a semiconductor plant struck in June, which Ukraine describes as making electronic components for Russian cruise missiles and air defenses. A facility hit in July, the Avitek plant, makes aircraft components, missile parts, and other military hardware. Warehouses operated by Russia’s largest online retailer were also targeted, putting strain on part of the logistics chain that brings equipment to forces in occupied Ukraine.
These strikes are possible because Ukraine’s long-range arsenal has improved in both range and precision. The country’s long-range drones have hit targets more than 2,500 kilometers into Russia, and Ukrainian companies like Fire Point are introducing missiles that can travel up to 3,000 kilometers. Despite these growing capabilities, many Russian manufacturing sites are difficult to destroy because they sit far from Ukraine, are protected by air defenses, and Kyiv’s supply of long-range missiles and drones remains limited. The Alabuga drone factory, for example, has been targeted by Ukraine multiple times but continues to grow in size.
Ukraine’s recent strikes are the first time some of these Russian factories supporting the country’s military production have been touched by the war directly. But for Ukrainian companies, navigating strikes is nothing new. Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukraine’s retail and logistics centers since the full-scale invasion began, including businesses with no apparent connection to the fighting. Only recently has Ukraine gained the ability to strike Russian military suppliers on this scale. As Ukraine builds its capacity and capabilities, factories inside Russia that supply the military could face strikes more often.
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