Political background: massive UAV attack on Moscow and the Moscow region

On the morning of March 11, drones from Ukraine attacked Moscow and the Moscow region. All 337 UAVs were shot down by air defense systems, 91 of them over the Moscow region. Two people were killed in the attack, and several others, including a child, were injured. Several houses in different districts of the Moscow region were damaged. Due to the drone attack, restrictions were imposed on flights at the capital's Vnukovo, Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo and Zhukovsky airports. Officials have already called the massive attack a war crime and an act of terrorism, while a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman pointed to the political background of the incident. For more information about the attack and the reaction of officials to what happened, see the Izvestia article.

The political motive behind the UAV attack on Moscow

On Tuesday, March 11, two major international events are taking place: a visit to Moscow by a delegation of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and negotiations between Ukraine and the United States in Saudi Arabia. Political experts have no doubt that a massive drone attack by Kiev was organized to prevent the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis.

According to the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, Kiev specifically planned a drone strike on the date when the OSCE delegation headed by the Secretary General, Turkish diplomat Feridun Sinirlioglu, arrives in the Russian capital.

"This is not the first time a visit to Moscow by a high-ranking foreign delegation has been accompanied by an attack by airborne drones. Last night, the Kiev regime sent drones to the capital when the OSCE Secretary General visits it. The head of the organization that Zelensky's sponsors reduced to the level of a talking shop, depriving it of its original meaning — ensuring security and cooperation in Europe," Zakharova wrote on the Telegram channel.

According to her, this was done so that OSCE members "would learn about the terrorist nature of the Kiev regime, not from papers, but in practice." Zakharova added that the OSCE Secretary General would visit the crash site of the Ukrainian drones in Moscow to get acquainted with the situation on the spot, and not their "third-party sources." Last trip of the Secretary General of the OSCE in Russia took place in June 2021, then this position was held Helga Schmid (Germany).

In turn, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov suggested asking the Kiev regime why a large-scale UAV attack on Russia took place on Tuesday.

"And you ask the Kiev regime," Peskov told reporters on the sidelines of a conference at the Higher School of Economics, answering the question why the UAV attack occurred on Tuesday with the apparent proximity of negotiations [between the United States and Ukraine].

On the afternoon of March 11, negotiations between representatives of the United States and Ukraine began in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. They will be the first public meeting since the altercation between Presidents Vladimir Zelensky and Donald Trump in the Oval Office. After that, the United States announced the suspension of armaments to Kiev. Washington has also stopped sharing intelligence information with Ukraine.

The American delegation was led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and included National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff. On the Ukrainian side, the meeting was attended by the head of the presidential office, Andrei Ermak, and his deputy, Pavel Palisa, as well as Foreign Minister Andrei Sibiga and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.

The governor of the Kherson region, Vladimir Saldo, also saw the connection with the negotiations in Saudi Arabia and the drone attack on the regions of Russia. According to him, today's raid and the strike with the help of HIMARS on Sunday at the market in Velikiye Kopany are links in the same chain. "This is both a cowardly reaction to the successful offensive of the Russian Armed Forces in the Kursk region, and a vile provocation against the background of the developing preparations for negotiations," he said.

Igor Kimakovsky, an adviser to the head of the DPR, called the drone attack a "death throe" before the talks in Saudi Arabia. Kiev understands that whatever the outcome of the upcoming dialogue, the current Ukrainian authorities will not benefit. Therefore, in the hope of somehow holding positions and showing the remnants of their abilities, Kiev organized this action, he believes.

At the same time, Ukrainian forces have been regularly trying to attack the Kursk and Smolensk nuclear power plants since the beginning of the conflict in 2022. The last attack on the nuclear power plant in Kursk was recorded on February 27, and before that on January 5.

"The UAVs flew not only to Moscow and the Moscow region, but also towards the Kurchatov NPP. I have said more than once that Zelensky is in an extreme stage of agony and is ready for nuclear terrorism and blackmail <...>," said Leonid Slutsky, head of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, LDPR leader.

The Kiev regime pursued three goals: to get guarantees of protection from Washington, to distract attention from the failure of the Ukrainian Armed Forces near Kursk, and to show Europe its readiness to continue fighting with Russia. This was pointed out by Vladimir Rogov, Chairman of the Commission of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation on sovereignty, co-chairman of the Coordinating Council for the integration of new regions.

Massive drone attack on Moscow and the Moscow region

Early in the morning on March 11, it became known about the largest attack of unmanned aerial vehicles from Ukraine since the beginning of the year. The target was 10 regions of Russia, including the cities of the Moscow region and the capital itself. According to the Ministry of Defense, 126 drones were shot down over the Kursk region, 91 UAVs were destroyed over the Moscow region, 38 over the Bryansk region.

Later, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that President Vladimir Putin had been informed about the drone attack on Moscow.

Peskov stressed that Kiev was hitting residential buildings, but the Russian military had done a great job. At the same time, Russia is attacking military facilities in its area, the Kremlin spokesman stressed.

A massive UAV attack on Moscow and the region. What is known by this hour

Most of the drones hit cities in the south of the Moscow region, but after repelling the attack, the wreckage of the downed drone fell on an apartment building in the southern district of Moscow. The roofs and glazing of house 27 on Domodedovo Street were slightly damaged. No one was injured, the nearby streets were not blocked, special services are working at the scene.

In the Moscow region, an attack by Ukrainian UAVs was observed in 13 cities: Domodedovo, Ramenskoye, Kolomna, Zaraysk, Silver Ponds, Serpukhov, Voskresensk, Lukhovitsy, Bronnitsy, Leninsky, Podolsk, Elektrostal and Kotelniki. In total, 337 drones were shot down over the Moscow region and on approach to Moscow.

In Vidnoye (Leninsky District), six people, including a four-year-old child, were injured by drone debris. They receive medical care. Some of the drones fell on the territory of the warehouses of the companies Moskox and Santehkomplekt.

In Domodedovo district, Ukrainian UAVs hit the parking lot next to the Miratorg production complex and RC company. According to the governor of the Moscow region, two people were killed in the attack, a 38-year-old man who worked as a security guard at the enterprise and a 50—year-old man. He was taken to the hospital with an open head injury, but doctors could not save him.

One victim, a 44-year-old man, was hospitalized with head injuries at Domodedovo Hospital. A fire started in the parking lot from falling fragments of the UAV, which burned down more than 20 cars. Firefighters and emergency services extinguished the fire.

The drone attack also targeted the private sector in Domodedovo. A 43-year-old woman was injured in the village of Kotlyakovo. She was hospitalized in serious condition.

In Ramenskoye, five people sought medical help due to the UAV attack. Two houses were damaged. At 6 Severnoye Shosse Street, seven apartments were hit. There are 13 residents in the temporary accommodation facility. Also in the village of Sofino, in the cottage village of Vysoky Bereg, debris hit house 148. The roof of the building caught fire, the fire is being contained.

During the incident, restrictions on the admission and release of aircraft were introduced at Vnukovo, Domodedovo, Zhukovsky, Sheremetyevo, Nizhny Novgorod and Yaroslavl airports. At the moment, flights have resumed, the Federal Air Transport Agency reported. The movement of trains through the Domodedovo railway station in both directions was stopped, which has now also improved.

The Kursk NPP is also operating normally against the background of a massive attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces drones on the region.

Compensation for victims and victims of the UAV attack on Moscow and the Moscow region

The families of those killed by a UAV crash in the Moscow region will be paid 1 million rubles, and the wounded — from 100,000 to 500,000 rubles, depending on the severity of their wounds, said Andrei Vorobyov, governor of the Moscow region.

"The most important thing now is to provide all necessary assistance to the victims and their families," the governor wrote.

He later added that, judging by the damaging elements found, the target of the attack was precisely humans.

A case of a terrorist attack has been opened due to a UAV attack on Moscow and the Moscow region.

Upon the attack, the Main Investigative Department of the TFR opened a criminal case under the article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on a terrorist act. This was announced by the official representative of the TFR Svetlana Petrenko.

"Upon the fact of massive attacks by unmanned aerial vehicles in the Moscow region, as a result of which there are dead and injured, the Main Investigative Department of the TFR has opened a criminal case on the grounds of a crime under paragraph "b" of Part 3 of art. 205 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (terrorist act)," she said.

Experienced investigators and criminologists from the central office of the Investigative Committee of Russia and experts from the SEC (Forensic Expert Center of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation) were involved in the investigation of the case. Experts will determine the circumstances of the incident, the types of UAVs and explosive devices, and the amount of damage caused. In addition, the actions of all those involved will be given a criminal legal assessment.

Which drones are used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The Ukrainian Armed Forces use various drones for their attacks. Most often these are the UAVs "Fierce", "Beaver", UJ-22, "Rubaka" and PD-2.

The Fierce drones are very similar in appearance to the Turkish Bayraktar and can fly at a distance of 1050-1150 km. To increase the flight range, these UAVs are equipped with a wing with a large extension and a large fuel tank of about 70-90 liters.

The Beaver is another Ukrainian drone that can fly up to a thousand kilometers produced by the Ukroboronprom concern. This 2.5 m long drone is capable of traveling up to a thousand km at a speed of 150-200 km/h. As a rule, it carries a cumulative ammunition of the KZ-6 type.

The Ukrainian-made UJ-22 drone resembles a scaled-down copy of a light-engine aircraft. It has a range of 800 km and can carry up to 100 kg of bomb load.

Also, according to some reports, the APU uses PD-2 and Rubaka drones.

The PD-2 is designed for aerial reconnaissance and combat use as a carrier of bombs with warheads weighing up to 3 kg. It can climb to an altitude of 3,000 m and fly for up to 10 hours.

The Rubaka is a kamikaze drone with a maximum range of 500 km, a maximum weight of up to five kg, made according to the "Flying Wing" scheme.