Russia claims there is another Ukrainian drone attack – military targets could be under fire. The Russian Ministry of Defence claimed that its air defence forces destroyed six drones last: one over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and three over the Lipetsk region. The governor of the Lipetsk region, Igor Artamonov, reported that three drones were ‘neutralised’ over the industrial area of Lipetsk, with no casualties or injuries, while urging residents not to publish photos and videos of the drone strike. According to the Russian Telegram channel Astra, the drones attacked the Lipetsk Tractor Plant and the Novolipetsk Steel Plant, with local social media users noting explosions and smoke in the area of the Lipetsk Tractor Plant. In the Voronezh region, local governor Alexander Gusev confirmed that two drones were shot down, with no casualties or damage reported. Meanwhile, in the Belgorod region, governor Vyacheslav Gladkov stated that several settlements in the Grayvoron urban district were attacked by drones, causing no casualties but damaging power lines and resulting in electricity outages in five settlements. Earlier last night, Ukrainian media outlet Suspilne reported that the attack had been confirmed by its sources in Ukrainian intelligence services (GUR).
Previously, on the night of Saturday, June 15, Russia reported that its air defence systems had shot down drones in the Rostov region. Explosions were heard near the city of Kamensk-Shakhtinsky, which is home to one of the largest chemical plants in southern Russia.
Stoltenberg: NATO mulls nuclear standby amid Russia, China threats. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance is considering taking some nuclear missiles out of storage and putting them on standby because of growing threats from Russia and China. He mentioned this in an interview with The Telegraph. Stoltenberg believes NATO needs to send a “direct signal” to its adversaries with its nuclear arsenal. He stressed that while NATO aims for “a world without nuclear weapons,” it will remain a nuclear alliance as long as these weapons exist. “I won’t go into operational details about how many nuclear warheads should be operational and which should be stored, but we need to consult on these issues. That’s exactly what we’re doing,” he added.
According to the Telegraph, Stoltenberg also openly praises several of NATO’s 32 allies for their contributions to the deterrent, including The Netherlands, which has recently invested in dual-capable fighter jets that can carry US nuclear weapons. He argued that a world where Russia, China, and North Korea have nuclear weapons but NATO does not would be more dangerous. Stoltenberg also pointed out that China is heavily investing in modern weapons, including nuclear arms, and expects its arsenal to grow to one thousand warheads by 2030.
Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief’s updates from the eastern frontline. Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, provided recent updates from the eastern frontlines, detailing Russian attempts to capture critical areas in four directions: Kupyansk, Pokrovsk, Kurakhiv, and Vremiv. “The nature of the enemy’s actions has not changed significantly. Active offensive operations of varying intensity are being conducted on the Kupyansk, Pokrovsk, Kurakhiv, and Vremiv operational directions, attempting to breach our troops’ defences and capture important areas or settlements,” he explained. “The Pokrovsky direction remains a focal point where the Russian army concentrates its main efforts,” he stated. “The majority of Russian strike brigades and regiments are concentrated in this direction, and intense battles continue in the areas of Hlybokyi, Chasiv Yar, and Staryi Mayorsk.”
“The Russians know that the steady arrival of significant arms and military equipment from our allies, including the deployment of the first F-16s to bolster our air defence, is working in our favour and reducing their likelihood of success.” That’s why the Russian command is currently focusing on ramping up and widening the geographical scope of combat operations. Their goal is to wear down our forces, disrupt reserve preparations, and prevent us from switching to active offensive actions,” believes Oleksandr Syrskyi.
Head of Military Administration: “Russians are conducting raids and filtrations in the Zaporizhzhia region.” Ivan Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration, disclosed on his Telegram channel that Russian forces and representatives of the illegal occupational administration in the temporarily held areas of the Zaporizhzhia region had escalated economic pressure on local Ukrainian residents. Reports indicate they are actively carrying out raids and inspections to find and seize unoccupied homes, forcing locals to go through Russian “filtration procedures”. Furthermore, Russians have been actively working to identify “ownerless property,” seize it, and later decide on its fate—whether to accommodate Russian military personnel and newly arrived workers from Russia or to sell it later. “Russians have determined that 35% of Melitopol’s housing market is being rented out without the approval of the occupation administration. As a result, they have been actively pursuing what they deem as ‘illegal’ rental agreements to closely monitor local residents’ earnings,” he added. Fedorov further elaborated that “Russians are compelling local residents to register their land plots, aiming to gain unrestricted control over our land in the future, knowing that many rightful owners won’t be able to prove their property rights.”
