Military and strategic expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi confirmed to the "Beyond the News" program that the drone attacks on targets inside Russia prove a development in the capabilities of the Ukrainian side in the use of drones, in exchange for the presence of gaps in the Russian air defense systems responsible for providing protection for strategic targets, starting from the Kremlin and Blue Dome.
He said that Ukraine began to use drones since last June, and that its capabilities in this field began to increase clearly, some of which were reaching a depth of more than 500 kilometers, speaking of an attempt to hit the logistical and operational supply system to weaken the combat capabilities of Russian forces fighting in Ukraine.
He added – in his interview with the episode (2023/5/5) of the program "Beyond the News" – that the attack that targeted the Kremlin recently, according to the Russian version, is still hazy and the source of the drone in which it was used is not yet known.
Earlier, the Kremlin announced that the Russian military and intelligence disrupted two drones that tried to attack the Kremlin palace in central Moscow, which accused Kiev of plotting to assassinate President Vladimir Putin.
Commenting on the marches targeting the Russian interior, strategic affairs expert Andrei Frolov said that the military and political administration in Russia takes the matter seriously, and revealed a meeting held by the Russian National Security Council to discuss the issue, stressing that many of the marches were destroyed around Moscow, stressing that Russian air defense systems are highly effective.
Kurt Volker, a former US ambassador to NATO, said his country did not know exactly who was launching the marches, were they Ukrainian agents inside Russia? Or the Russians themselves, to push things towards further escalation?
He revealed that the United States does not provide Ukraine with equipment and weapons that could be used to strike inside Russia, and asked them not to do so, but described those targets as legitimate.
The Russian emergency authorities announced a fire at the "Ilsky" oil facility in the southern Krasnodar region as a result of a march attack. The attack was the second such attack on the same facility in 24 hours, after another drone attack caused a fire in a fuel tank. Ukraine has consistently denied being behind attacks against targets inside Russia.
Spring Attack and the Balance of Power
On the balance of power between the two parties in light of the so-called spring attack, which was talked about by American and Western intelligence circles, Al-Duwairi said that given the element of Western weapons, which is distinguished technically and in performance, the numerical balance will be in favor of the Russian forces, and qualitative in favor of the Ukrainian forces.
The Russian expert said that the balance of power is in favor of his country more than it was last year, in terms of quality and number, and that Ukraine is no longer what it was before despite the Western weapons and equipment it receives, expecting the fall of this Western support soon. He also said that Russia did not specify the timing of the end of the "military operation" in Ukraine, and the results would be based on the goals set by President Vladimir Putin: the disarmament of Ukraine and regime change there, he said.
While stressing that his country has cautious optimism about the spring offensive announced by Kiev weeks ago, the American guest expected the Ukrainian side to succeed in achieving achievements.