{"id":6383,"date":"2026-05-01T09:35:35","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T09:35:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2026\/05\/01\/ukraine-begins-to-flex-muscle-as-an-emerging-air-power-angering-russia\/"},"modified":"2026-05-01T09:35:35","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T09:35:35","slug":"ukraine-begins-to-flex-muscle-as-an-emerging-air-power-angering-russia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2026\/05\/01\/ukraine-begins-to-flex-muscle-as-an-emerging-air-power-angering-russia\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine begins to flex muscle as an emerging air power, angering Russia"},"content":{"rendered":"<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>Ukraine used its latest technology to deepen strikes against Russian oil storage, ports and refineries in the past week, bombing targets in the Urals 1,600 kilometres (990 miles) from its borders and prompting protests about \u201cterrorist attacks\u201d from the Kremlin spokesman.<\/p>\n<p>President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday announced \u201ca new stage in the use of Ukrainian weapons to limit the potential of Russia\u2019s war\u201d.<\/p>\n<section>\n<h2>Recommended Stories <\/h2>\n<p><span>list of 4 items<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span>list 1 of 4<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/4\/29\/at-least-three-killed-more-than-10-injured-in-russian-attacks-on-ukraine\">At least three killed, more than 10 injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine<\/a><\/li>\n<li><span>list 2 of 4<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/4\/29\/uk-expels-russian-diplomat-in-tit-for-tat-move-2\">UK expels Russian diplomat in tit-for-tat move<\/a><\/li>\n<li><span>list 3 of 4<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/4\/29\/ukraine-asks-israel-to-seize-ship-carrying-stolen-russian-grain\">Ukraine asks Israel to seize ship carrying grain \u2018stolen\u2019 by Russia<\/a><\/li>\n<li><span>list 4 of 4<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2026\/4\/30\/its-all-very-toxic\">\u2018Environmental disaster\u2019: Ukrainian attacks on oil refineries rock Russia<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>The Ukraine Security Service (SBU) later clarified it had struck Transneft\u2019s oil pumping and distribution facility in the city of Perm that day, from where oil was pumped to the Perm refinery and via pipeline in four directions across Russia.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4529056\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4529056\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/INTERACTIVE-WHO-CONTROLS-WHAT-IN-UKRAINE-1777386423.png?quality=80\" alt=\"INTERACTIVE-WHO CONTROLS WHAT IN UKRAINE-1777386423\" data-interactive=\"true\" fetchpriority=\"low\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4529056\">(Al Jazeera)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The facility is \u201ca strategically important hub of the main oil transportation system\u201d, said the SBU, and preliminary information suggested that \u201calmost all oil storage tanks are on fire\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Russia\u2019s Ministry of Defence confirmed the strike and said it had downed 98 Ukrainian UAVs across various regions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Urals are now within reach, be vigilant,\u201d wrote Russia\u2019s presidential envoy to the region, Artem Zhoga.<\/p>\n<p>Ukraine\u2019s campaign has begun to elicit reactions from the Russian government.<\/p>\n<p>Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the attacks on oil facilities \u201cterrorist attacks\u201d.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4529052\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4529052\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/INTERACTIVE-WHO-CONTROLS-WHAT-IN-EASTERN-UKRAINE-copy-1777386402.png?quality=80\" alt=\"INTERACTIVE-WHO CONTROLS WHAT IN EASTERN UKRAINE copy-1777386402\" data-interactive=\"true\" fetchpriority=\"low\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4529052\">(Al Jazeera)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A Russian Defence Ministry announcement \u2013 that military cadets and a column of equipment would not take part in this year\u2019s Victory Day parade commemorating the end of World War II \u201cdue to the current operational situation\u201d \u2013 was also widely interpreted as a precaution against potential Ukrainian drone strikes.<\/p>\n<p>Ukraine\u2019s strikes are part of a strategy of depriving Russia of windfall profits from soaring oil prices due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n<p>Zelenskyy said Russian internal documents seen by his foreign intelligence service admitted that Ukraine had deprived oil offloading ports of much of their capacity.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4534730\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4534730\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2026-04-30T100858Z_651828694_RC2MZKAZ64TN_RTRMADP_3_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-DNIPRO-1777549499.jpg?w=770&#038;resize=770%2C528&#038;quality=80\" alt=\"A resident walks at the site a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Dnipro, Ukraine April 30, 2026. REUTERS\/Stringer TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY\" fetchpriority=\"low\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4534730\">A resident walks at the site of a Russian drone attack in Dnipro, Ukraine, April 30, 2026 [Reuters]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Primorsk and Ust-Luga on the Baltic Sea had lost 13 percent and 43 percent of capacity, respectively, and the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk 38 percent.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe believe that such internal Russian data may be underestimated,\u201d Zelenskyy said.<\/p>\n<p>The internal figures roughly agree with a Reuters March estimate that Russia had lost approximately 40 percent of its export capacity.<\/p>\n<p>That translated into revenue losses of $2.3bn in March, Zelenskyy estimated.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4529049\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4529049\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/INTERACTIVE-WHO-CONTROLS-WHAT-IN-SOUTHERN-UKRAINE-1777386384.png?quality=80\" alt=\"INTERACTIVE-WHO CONTROLS WHAT IN SOUTHERN UKRAINE-1777386384\" data-interactive=\"true\" fetchpriority=\"low\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4529049\">(Al Jazeera)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said that Ukraine had likely conducted at least 18 strikes against Russian oil infrastructure in April.<\/p>\n<p>Kyiv\u2019s attacks have been \u201csteadily increasing the range, volume, and intensity\u201d with \u201coutsized impacts on Russian oil exports\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Ukraine struck other oil and military targets during the past week.<\/p>\n<p>On April 23, it damaged three storage tanks at the Gorky oil pumping station in Nizhny Novgorod and struck the Novokuibyshevsk petrochemical plant in Samara.<\/p>\n<p>The next day, it destroyed two production facilities at the Atlant-Aero factory in Taganrog, Rostov, which builds the Molniya drones used to attack Ukrainian cities.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4534725\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4534725\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2026-04-30T082927Z_1756428957_RC27YKA15YD8_RTRMADP_3_UKRAINE-CRISIS-DONETSK-REGION-1777549486.jpg?w=770&#038;resize=770%2C513&#038;quality=80\" alt=\"A serviceman of the Ukrainian Armed Forces installs anti-drone nets over a road near the frontline town of Druzhkivka, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk region, Ukraine April 28, 2026. REUTERS\/Serhii Korovainyi TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY\" fetchpriority=\"low\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4534725\">A serviceman of the Ukrainian Armed Forces installs anti-drone nets over a road near the front-line town of Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, April 28, 2026 [Serhii Korovainyi\/Reuters]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>On Sunday, Ukraine struck the Yaroslavl oil refinery, and on Tuesday, they struck the Tuapse oil refinery on the Black Sea for the third time this month. Even before this latest strike, at least 24 oil storage tanks at the site had been destroyed, said Ukraine\u2019s head of the Center for Countering Disinformation, Andriy Kovalenko.<\/p>\n<p>Russian President Vladimir <a href=\"http:\/\/kremlin.ru\/events\/president\/news\/79649\">Putin<\/a> dispatched his Civil Defence, Emergencies, and Disaster Relief minister, Alexander Kurenkov, to oversee the response personally.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"an-emerging-air-power\">An emerging air power<\/h2>\n<p>Ukraine has been developing its own long-range strike capabilities and devotes 20 percent of its defence resources to new technologies, said Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.<\/p>\n<p>One of its leading drone manufacturers, Wild Hornets, recently said a drone operator had used its remote piloting system to fly a Sting interceptor drone at a distance of 2,000km (1,240 miles).<\/p>\n<p>On April 23, Fedorov said Ukraine had successfully tested remote control technology that enabled pilots to operate from the relative safety of Kyiv or Lviv, \u201cat distances of hundreds and thousands of kilometres\u201d.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4529047\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4529047\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/INTERACTIVE-Ukraine-Refugees-1777386364.png?quality=80\" alt=\"INTERACTIVE Ukraine Refugees-1776241781\" data-interactive=\"true\" fetchpriority=\"low\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4529047\">(Al Jazeera)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Ukraine is now touting its battlefield innovations in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in the wake of Iran\u2019s attack on the Gulf nations.<\/p>\n<p>Zelenskyy met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman in Riyadh on April 24 to discuss \u201cthe export of our Ukrainian security expertise and capabilities in air defence\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Days later, he said Kyiv produces as many as twice the number of certain types of weapons as the military needed, and that \u201cUkrainian companies will get a real opportunity to enter the markets of partner countries, provided that our military have the right to take the necessary amount of weapons first\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The burgeoning relationship with the Gulf, he said, had invoked Moscow\u2019s concern.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRussia is particularly irritated by our contacts in the Middle East and the Gulf region,\u201d he told Ukrainians on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>More surprisingly, he said some allies, too, were irritated by the competition.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are also aware of the complex attitude of some of our other partners towards this \u2013 partners who would prefer to limit our state\u2019s independence,\u201d Zelenskyy said in an evening video address. \u201cWe consider this their mistake.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ukraine used its latest technology to deepen strikes against Russian oil storage, ports and refineries in the past week, bombing targets in the Urals 1,600 kilometres (990 miles) from its borders and prompting protests about \u201cterrorist attacks\u201d from the Kremlin spokesman. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday announced \u201ca new stage in the use of Ukrainian &#8230; <a title=\"Ukraine begins to flex muscle as an emerging air power, angering Russia\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2026\/05\/01\/ukraine-begins-to-flex-muscle-as-an-emerging-air-power-angering-russia\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Ukraine begins to flex muscle as an emerging air power, angering Russia\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6384,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6383","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6383","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6383"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6383\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6384"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6383"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6383"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6383"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}