Russo-Ukrainian war, day 1495: Ukraine absorbed 3,000 drone strikes in a week — and spent the weekend setting Baltic ports on fire

Exclusives

Russia’s enormous “giga turtle” tank covered in chains, spines, and mine rollers just attacked Kostiantynivka at 10 km/hr. Persisting in their efforts to capture Kostiantynivka, the Russians rolled out their biggest, heaviest and slowest assault vehicles.

Russia put a hula hoop on its attack drone. Now it flies 50 km into Ukraine’s rear.. A bulky plastic ring is one key to deeper Russian drone strikes targeting Ukraine's vulnerable logistics.

Ukraine isn’t just burning Russia’s oil — it’s going after two refineries that keep Russian tanks moving and bombers flying. Energy analyst Mykhailo Honchar writes for EP that KINEF and YANOS are Russia's leading producers of specialized military oils and greases without which armored vehicles, helicopters, and missile systems cannot function.

Poland and Estonia are building Shahed killer Mark I at sustainable cost. Inspiration came from Kyiv. Shooting down a $20,000 Shahed with a $3 million Patriot is unsustainable.

Rubio raised his voice at EU foreign policy chief — then denied anything happened. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas to "step back" and handle Russia diplomacy herself after she pressed him over Washington's failure to increase pressure on Moscow at a G7 ministerial in France, Axios reported

Ukraine hits Ust-Luga and Primorsk for the third time in five days — the pace suggests Kyiv is trying to destroy Russia’s Baltic oil export ports beyond repair. NASA satellite data confirmed new fires at both ports; together they handle 2 million barrels of Russian crude exports daily. A drone also struck Severstal's blast furnace in Cherepovets in the same night.

Russian shadow war is escalating. NATO railways and sea cables are in the crosshairs.. Military supply chain hubs are especially vulnerable to deniable attacks

Military

Ukraine absorbed 3,000 drone strikes in seven days. Zelenskyy is asking the world to notice. The president calls for joint weapons production and shared defense systems, arguing that what's hitting Kyiv is the same arsenal hitting the Gulf.

Ust-Luga on fire again: Drone strikes keep Russia's Baltic oil ports burning as Ukraine targets war revenues at source. Drone strikes have now hit Ust-Luga multiple times in days, targeting revenues that stand to grow as global prices rise amid the Iran war.

Ukraine struck Russian explosives factory 1,000 kilometers from front with Flamingo cruise missile it built itself. The Chapayevsk plant supplied explosive fill for Russian munitions.

Ukraine strikes Yaroslavl key fuel hub for Russian army, targeting its 15 million-ton annual capacity. War moves beyond the frontline.

Ukraine destroys Russia's anti-drone radar system in Crimea, confirms damage of Kirishi refinery. The Ukrainian General Staff also reported more strikes on the occupied peninsula and in the occupied part of Donetsk Oblast.

Latvia is sending new CVR(T) armored vehicles with 7.62 mm machine gun and 510 km range. One variant is an armored ambulance that evacuates wounded where no wheeled vehicle can follow.

UK just gave Ukraine's air defense £100 million superboost. It has brought total British air defense commitments over the past two months to £600 million.

Ukraine's interceptor drones set record. Last year, this number would have meant catastrophe. During the 24 March attack, Ukrainian forces destroyed more than 94% of 999 incoming drones.

Intelligence and technology

Pro-Ukrainian partisans open drone corridors through Russia by burning the towers that block them, Atesh claims. The Novgorod sabotage on 17 March is the latest example of Atesh coordinating ground operations with Ukrainian drone strikes to neutralize EW cover allowing aircraft to hit their targets.

Russian satellites imaged US Diego Garcia, Prince Sultan Air Base, Al-Udeid, and Incirlik — days before Iranian strikes, Zelenskyy says. Speaking in Qatar, President Zelenskyy shared intelligence from his morning briefing.

Ukraine is developing STRILA-2 with solid-fuel rocket booster based on German Jäger tech. Germany funded 15,000 STRILAs. Now it is investing in STRILA-2 with a rocket booster, AI guidance.

International

Zelenskyy meets Jordan's king to discuss security partnership — the same Shaheds that hit Kyiv are now hitting Amman's neighbors. Ukraine has 200-plus specialists already deployed across the Gulf; the Jordan visit is the latest stop in a regional campaign to turn battlefield experience into defense partnerships.

Finland confirms Ukrainian drone in its airspace as Kyiv's Baltic strike campaign pushes deeper north — Helsinki on alert. Fighter jets tracked the drone but stood down over collateral-damage concerns — and at least one more device is believed to have crashed.

"Nothing has been redirected": Ukraine's top diplomat pushes back on fears that Middle East war is eating its weapons. Sybiha raised the diversion question in front of other G7 partners in France — and the answer was unequivocal.

Zelenskyy in Abu Dhabi: teams to finalize details on defense deal after UAE talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed on security and defense cooperation with the UAE after meeting President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, with Ukrainian military specialists already deployed in the country for several weeks ahead of the visit.

Finland to audit whether US is actually delivering NATO-bought weapons to Ukraine. "What has been promised to Ukraine must reach Ukraine" — Finnish Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen, announcing that Helsinki will audit US compliance with contracts under which European NATO members purchased weapons for Ukraine from American suppliers.

US warns allies: Patriots could be interrupted for Ukraine, as supplies could shift to Iran war. Three European officials confirmed the warning.

Humanitarian and social impact

Russian Shahed drones struck maternity hospital in Ukraine's Odesa. 80 people were inside facility at time of attack. Ten people were injured in the attack.

Ukrainians opened record number of businesses in this European country. Nearest competitor managed 2,000. Ukrainians repeated their 2024 record across sectors from gastronomy and logistics to IT, as their homeland faces war.

Political and legal developments

Warsaw just made it legal to fight for Kyiv. It used to carry five years in Polish prison.

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