Ukrainian drones can now strike targets deep inside Russia at a range of up to 1,600 kilometers. This puts roughly a quarter of the country within reach – an area where about 70% of Russia’s population lives.
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Bloomberg reported on May 5 that Ukrainian UAVs are increasingly hitting targets far inside Russian territory. In particular, they now reach the Ural Mountains, home to millions of Russians who had previously felt untouched by the war.
On April 25, a Ukrainian drone strike damaged a residential building in Yekaterinburg, a city with a population of around 1.5 million. Until then, the city had not experienced Ukrainian attacks. Since early April, authorities have also shut down the local airport for five days due to drone threats.
This came as a shock. Even though no one was killed, people finally realized the city is no longer deep in the rear,” a Yekaterinburg resident, Vladimir, said.
Yekaterinburg lies about 1,700 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. During World War II, it served as a rear base, as factories were relocated there under the assumption that European attacks could not reach them.
Ukrainian drone capabilities expand
At the same time, Ukraine has stepped up drone strikes on Russian oil refineries and other industrial facilities. These attacks reduce Kremlin revenues, especially amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East.
Kyiv plans to expand its long-range strike capabilities, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media. According to him, Ukraine can now hit targets more than 1,500 kilometers away. As a result, Ukrainian drones are capable of reaching about a quarter of Russia’s territory. More than 70% of the country’s 146 million residents live in this area.
Ukrainian UAVs have also been regularly targeting Russia’s Orenburg region, located along the southern edge of the Urals, for over a year. In 2025, drones reached the Tyumen region in Siberia – about 2,000 kilometers from Ukraine’s border. However, that strike was a one-off, and the distance remains a record. In addition to drones, Ukraine also uses domestically developed missiles for long-range attacks.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin has responded cautiously to strikes near the Urals. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told journalists that President Vladimir Putin regularly receives briefings on Ukrainian attacks.
Earlier, The Ukrainian Review reported that on May 5, Ukraine struck a Russian military facility in Cheboksary using F-5 Flamingo cruise missiles. Ukrainian forces also hit an oil refinery in Russia and several targets in temporarily occupied territories.
