Ukraine risks losing Western support if it continues carrying out drone strikes on Russian soil, a top defence analyst has warned.
Professor Michael Clarke told Sky News that a “great battle” between Russia and Ukraine was taking place to find gaps in the two side’s air defences.
A rare drone attack jolted Moscow early Tuesday, causing only light damage but forcing evacuations as residential buildings were struck in the Russian capital for the first time in the war against Ukraine. The Kremlin, meanwhile, pursued its relentless bombardment of Kyiv with a third assault on the city in 24 hours.
The Russian Defense Ministry said five drones were shot down in Moscow and the systems of three others were jammed, causing them to veer off course. President Vladimir Putin called it a “terrorist” act by Kyiv.
On Wednesday drones struck two oil refineries just 40 miles east of Russia’s biggest oil export terminals sparking a fire at one but causing no damage to the other.
Referring to drone strikes “as a cat-and-mouse game”, Clarke said: “My goodness, they are sailing close to the wind and if they lose Western support, they lose the war.”
Clarke claimed the motivation for Russian drone attacks was to find out weaknesses in Ukrainian air defences and make them use up their ammunition by turning them all on.
He spoke of how the conditions were right for Ukraine to finally mount a land based counter attack.
“The weather is right, the ground is hard enough to get armoured warfare off the roads. It’s important that armoured vehicles do not get stuck in the roads as the Russians found.
He added: “The West expects Ukraine to launch its offensive because they have got all this equipment now.
“When the heavy metal starts to move, then you know that the main offensive will have started.”
