Jan 5 (Reuters) – Ukraine has targeted Moscow with drones every day of 2026 so far, according to data published by Russia’s Defence Ministry, in what appeared to mark an escalation from earlier, more sporadic attacks on the Russian capital.
By midnight on Sunday alone, Russian air defence systems had destroyed 57 drones over the Moscow region out of 437 downed over Russia, the ministry said on its Telegram messaging app.
The daily activity suggests a shift from past patterns, when Moscow was hit more intermittently, often around symbolic dates or as a form of signalling rather than a near routine pressure campaign.
There was no immediate comment from Ukraine, but Kyiv has increasingly used long range drones to strike targets deep inside Russia.
Ukraine says such attacks aim to disrupt military logistics and energy infrastructure, raise costs for Moscow’s war effort and respond to repeated Russian missile and drone attacks in the war that Russia launched nearly four years ago.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has reported multiple interceptions since New Year’s Eve without giving further details.
Russia typically reports only how many drones its air defences say they downed, not how many Ukraine launched, and rarely discloses the full extent of damage unless civilians are killed or civilian sites are hit.
The attacks have forced temporary closures at Moscow airports and at scores of other Russian airports for safety reasons, Russia’s aviation watchdog Rosaviatsiya said on Telegram.
The disruption comes during Russia’s extended New Year and Orthodox Christmas break, which this year runs through January 9, when many Russians take vacations and travel domestically and abroad, making it one of the country’s busiest periods for transport and tourism.
According to RIA state news calculations, Russia’s air defences intercepted and destroyed at least 1,548 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory and the Crimean Peninsula over the past week.
(Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
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