Russia Vows Retaliation for Ukrainian Strikes on Its Regions

On Friday, Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that her country will retaliate against Ukrainian attacks on its regions.

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"Russia will respond to such encroachments on its territory," she stressed, adding that Western involvement is clearly evident behind Kiev's latest attacks.

Zakharova noted that the West is not only supplying Kiev with longer-range missiles and heavy weaponry, but also clearly authorizing their use against Russia, thereby contributing to further escalation.

According to data reported by AFP, Russia destroyed 51 Ukranian drones launched against Crimea, 44 drones in Krasnodar, 6 over Belgorod, 6 over the Black Sea, and over Kursk.

"The offensive was one of the largest overnight drone attacks by Ukraine and comes as Russian forces advance along the front line, making their biggest territorial gains in 18 months," France 24 commented.

On Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was quoted by the Interfax-Ukraine news agency as saying that his country is no longer experiencing an artillery shell shortage.

"For the first time during the war, none of the brigades complained that there were no artillery shells," he said.

Previously, on Wednesday, Zakharova also warned that "No West weapon will avoid the collapse of Zelensky's criminal regime. All equipment delivered to Ukraine will be destroyed."

Meanwhile, the European Union Council prohibited the broadcasting activities of four media related to Russia, namely Ria Novosti, Voice of Europe, Izvestia, and Rossiyskaya.

Moscu described this new form of censorship as "a purge" of the European informative space of "any alternative to Western narratives"