Ukraine approves deeper strikes in Russia following hypersonic missile barrage

Approval of expanded deep-strike campaign

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the approval of new long-range military operations targeted deep inside Russian territory. The strategic authorization followed formal operational briefings delivered to the president by Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevhen Khmara and Commander-in-Chief Mykhailo Drapatyi. While the Ukrainian leadership did not disclose specific tactical methods or target coordinates for the upcoming missions, Zelensky explained that deep strikes function as retaliatory long-range sanctions against ongoing Russian bombardments.

We are preparing to expand our long-range capabilities.

The announcement builds upon strategic updates first outlined in July, when Zelensky stated that Ukrainian defense planners had revised their priority targeting list to encompass sites located more than 3,000 kilometres inside the borders of the Russian Federation. Ukraine has progressively broadened its deep-strike campaign to target Russian oil processing plants, military transport hubs, logistics depots, and weapons manufacturing facilities across Russian territory.

Overnight Russian missile and drone assault

The Ukrainian decision followed a coordinated Russian air assault launched overnight against Ukrainian regional centres and infrastructure. Russian forces launched two Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles from the Kursk region alongside 174 drones and other aerial weapons. The Ukrainian Air Force identified the primary operational axes of the Russian attack as pointing toward the Odesa and Kyiv regions.

According to the Ukrainian military, both Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles missed their intended targets, with Ukrainian specialists continuing efforts to identify the exact impact locations. Although air defense units intercepted a large portion of the barrage, the Ukrainian Air Force confirmed that Russian weapons recorded direct impacts across 15 separate locations, while falling wreckage and debris were documented in nine distinct communities.

Ukrainian strikes on Russian logistical positions

Prior to the Ukrainian presidential announcement, Ukrainian defense forces conducted an overnight counter-strike operation between 18 and 19 September against Russian military assets in temporarily occupied territories. Ukrinform reported that the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine published details of the mission, which struck Russian drone command stations, training facilities, and logistical equipment depots across the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

In the Donetsk region, Ukrainian strikes targeted Russian drone control centres in the Luhansk and Pokrovsk districts, a technical equipment depot in Rybinsk, and an ammunition storage site near Amvrosiivka. In the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukrainian units struck Russian drone control points across the Volodymyrivka, Verbovye, Dobropillya, and Rivnopillya districts, including two separate command posts in Novoprokopivka. Ukrainian forces also attacked the Vostochny military training camp located in the occupied area of Novopetrivka.

Interception tallies and civilian casualties

By 08:00 on the morning of 19 September, Ukrainian air defense units reported that they had shot down or neutralized 141 incoming aerial targets. The intercepted package included three Banderol or Dan-T aerial targets and 138 unmanned aerial vehicles, which encompassed Shahed drones, Gerbera models, and other types. Defense officials noted that approximately half of the intercepted Shahed drones were powered by jet propulsion.

The overnight aerial attack followed intense Russian bombardments in Kharkiv on 18 September that resulted in the deaths of four people. Following the main overnight assault, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that further drone strikes continued to target the Odesa, Kyiv, and Kharkiv regions throughout the morning.