Ukraine drone hits Wildberries warehouse 2,000 km inside Russia

A Ukrainian long-range drone struck a Wildberries warehouse in Yekaterinburg, sparking a fire and mass evacuation. The attack highlighted Kyiv's expanding reach inside Russia even as pressure grows on Ukraine's eastern front.

In Short

• Three drones hit the warehouse roof, forcing evacuation of 800 workers
• Officials said no injuries occurred and most stored goods escaped damage
• Zelenskyy urged faster air defence and ballistic missile development efforts

Ukraine said its long-range drone campaign deep inside Russia is continuing as one of its drones struck a warehouse used by Wildberries, Russia's biggest online retailer, in the Ural Mountains, more than 2,000 kilometres from the border. Local officials and the company said the attack set the warehouse in Yekaterinburg, Russia's fourth-largest city, on fire, though no one was injured.

The strike came as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pressed for faster weapons development, especially air defence systems and ballistic missiles, while Ukrainian forces remained under pressure on the eastern front. Both Russia and Ukraine also reported another night of heavy drone attacks.

Wildberries said most of the goods stored at the Yekaterinburg warehouse were not damaged, unlike at some of the more than a dozen other company depots struck by Ukraine in recent weeks that have burned down. Regional governor Denis Pasler said three drones hit the roof of the warehouse. Artyom Zhoga, the Kremlin's representative in the region, said 800 people were evacuated and nobody was hurt.

Ukraine has regularly struck targets in the distant Urals this year and has also hit a Russian oil refinery in western Siberia, nearly 2,500 kilometres from the border. The attacks underline how Kyiv has used drone innovation as a key part of its response to Russia's invasion by a much larger military. According to Kyiv officials, those efforts have drawn international interest, leading to drone cooperation agreements with nine countries, while talks are under way with 15 others.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine must keep up the pace of technological development, particularly in air defence, as Russian ballistic missiles continue to hit civilian areas while Ukraine faces a shortage of American-made Patriot interceptor missiles. He said a joint European anti-ballistic development programme involving 10 countries is already under way.

"Ukraine is capable of producing its (anti-ballistic) missile and launcher, while our partners will provide the necessary components and critical elements -- radars, sensors, and everything else required," Zelenskyy said on social media. "An anti-ballistic program of our own -- one that is truly large-scale -- will greatly benefit everyone in Europe."

At the same time, Ukraine is working on making its own ballistic missiles for use against Russia. "The tests have shown strong potential. We need to turn this into a real weapon," Zelenskyy said.

In eastern Ukraine, front-line defences remain under strain as Russia's larger army looks for a breakthrough after months of only limited gains, which Western analysts and officials say have come at a high cost in troop casualties for Moscow. Ukraine has been evacuating children from Kramatorsk, one of the four cities in the Donetsk region that make up the so-called Fortress Belt, a heavily defended line about 50 kilometres long that has helped block Russia's attempt to seize Ukraine's industrial heartland.

Vadym Filashkin, head of the Donetsk region's military administration, said on Friday that more than 800 people, including 91 children, were evacuated over the previous 24 hours. Ukraine has also been using mid-range strike drones to disrupt Russian supply lines and slow its advance.

Russia's Defence Ministry said its air defences shot down 203 Ukrainian drones from late Thursday to early Friday. Ukraine's air force said Russia attacked with 147 long-range strike drones. In the northern Sumy region, authorities said a Russian drone hit a busy market on Friday morning, injuring 10 people. Oleh Hryhorov, head of the regional administration, said Russia also launched glide bombs and different types of drones at the regional capital, hitting residential buildings, transport and infrastructure and injuring two people. The latest exchanges showed that while Ukraine is expanding its long-range strike capabilities and weapons plans, the war is continuing to bring pressure on the front lines and fresh attacks on both sides.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends