A Ukrainian drone attack on a major Russian weapons depot triggered an explosion so powerful that it was detected by earthquake monitoring stations, marking one of the most significant strikes on Moscow’s military supplies since the war began.
Pro-Russian military bloggers reported that Ukraine targeted an arsenal storing missiles, ammunition, and explosives in Toropets, a historic town over 300 miles north of Ukraine and about 230 miles west of Moscow.
Social media footage captured a massive fireball lighting up the night sky, with detonations echoing across a nearby lake in a region not far from the Belarusian border.
The attack is part of a broader Ukrainian drone campaign aimed at Russian oil refineries, power plants, airfields, and military factories, underscoring Kyiv’s growing long-range drone capabilities.
Earthquake monitoring stations in the region picked up what appeared to be a minor earthquake, caused by the blast.
A set of satellite images showed the Toropets ammunition depot before and after the drone strike, highlighting the extent of the damage.
The operation was carried out by the Ukrainian security service in coordination with the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine and the Special Operations Force.
An unnamed Ukrainian security official revealed that the depot housed long-range Russian missiles and KAB guided bombs.
Russia’s defense ministry claimed that 54 Ukrainian drones targeted five regions in western Russia overnight and stated that all drones were intercepted and destroyed.
However, in an implicit acknowledgment of the strike, Igor Rudenya, governor of Russia’s Tver region, confirmed that firefighters were working to contain a fire, and some residents had been evacuated from their homes.
Explosions at Russian Ammunition Depot
He noted that debris from a downed Ukrainian drone had sparked the blaze but did not specify what was burning.
Russian state media reported that schools and nurseries in the Zapadnodvinsk district, bordering the Toropetsk district in the Tver region, were closed on Wednesday following the attack.
Some pro-war Russian bloggers expressed outrage at how Ukrainian drones could cause such a massive explosion at what was believed to be a highly secure facility.
Anastasia Kashevarova, a prominent blogger with strong ties to the Russian military, sharply criticized the defense ministry and authorities on Telegram for allowing Ukraine to “blow up a massive military depot.”
She wrote: “How many more mistakes can they make? It’s the third year of the special military operation, but the incompetence continues.”
The strike by Ukrainian-made drones comes as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy continues his efforts to convince Western allies to allow Kyiv to use Western-supplied missiles against Russian airbases and weapons depots, to stem Moscow’s advances in eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies, including the United States and the United Kingdom, are debating whether to permit Kyiv to carry out deep strikes within Russian territory using long-range weapons such as the American Atacms and Anglo-French Storm Shadow missiles, also known in France as Scalp.
The Kremlin has warned that such a decision would signify direct Western involvement in the conflict, with some officials close to President Vladimir Putin hinting that Moscow might respond with nuclear weapons.
Since the beginning of 2024, Russian forces have continued to make steady gains in eastern Ukraine, moving closer to the strategic city of Pokrovsk.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Russian military announced that it had captured the town of Ukrainsk, located between Pokrovsk and Kurakhove, another Ukrainian stronghold.
