Unexpected blow: Ukrainians destroyed drone factories 1,000 kilometers from the border

Russia on Tuesday reported drone attacks on factories in Tatarstan, more than 1,100 km from Ukraine, and said several people were slightly injured in the strikes.

“Drone attacks were carried out against factories in Tatarstan in Lelabuga and Nizhnekamsk,” the press service of regional leader Rustam Minikhanov told Telegram.

Near Yelabuga is a special economic zone where chemical and mechanical engineering and metalworking factories are located.

There is a large gasoline refinery in Nizhnekamsk.

Two people were injured in Alabuga Special Economic Zone when two drones hit a house, the local administration said in a statement.

Ukrainians are improving drones

Ukraine continues to develop drones designed to strike targets on Russian territory, the country’s Minister of Digital Transformation, Mikhail Fyodorov, told The Moscow Times. “Most of the drones that attacked Russian oil refineries (refineries. – TMT) have a range of 700 to 1,000 kilometers, but now there are models that can fly more than 1,000 kilometers,” M. Fedorov told the newspaper ” Die Welt.” In addition, he said, the first prototypes of drones with artificial intelligence could be released by the end of 2024.

Since the beginning of this year, Ukraine has managed to increase the production of drones tenfold compared to 2023, Mr. Fyodorov noted. Before that, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had set a goal of 2024. produce at least 1 million drones. According to Fedorov, the companies are working according to the plan, but “want to exceed the target”. This applies to different types of drones: FPV (First Person View) drones, reconnaissance, transport, combat, maritime and kamikaze drones.