Ukrainian long-range strikes reach new targets deep behind Russian lines
Meduza analysis shows that Ukrainian strikes on the Russian rear have significantly increased their range in recent weeks, reaching up to 100 km from the front line.
The war in Ukraine is entering a new phase: while the Russian offensive stalls at the front, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have gained an edge in drone warfare. Meduza's study, based on thousands of geolocated attacks, reveals that Ukrainian strikes against Russia's operational rear have become far deeper and more systematic.
The Ukrainian military launched an intense long-range strike campaign against Russian supply zones in mid-May. For the first time in a long period, targets were hit about 100 kilometers (62 miles) from the front. Fuel tankers, supply trucks, and other vehicles, along with people including civilians, came under fire. On the Novorossiya highway alone, which links Rostov-on-Don with Simferopol, at least 30 vehicles were struck in May.
To assess the scale of the campaign, Meduza analyzed strike coordinates published in open sources. Independent French analyst Clément Molin estimated that videos from the past 48 days showed about 500 damaged trucks. However, only 270 such strikes have been geolocated since the start of the year. While the exact number of attacks cannot be determined, the changes in their range can be tracked.
The study shows that in May and June 2026 the Ukrainian Armed Forces significantly increased the depth of strikes. The median distance grew from a few kilometers to several dozen kilometers. This trend held at least until June 18. Strikes are not limited to fuel trucks but also target other assets in the rear. Thanks to Hornet drones (made by the company of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt), the Ukrainian forces can now systematically hit moving targets.
The strike range varies across different front sectors. For example, behind Russia's "Vostok" grouping advancing toward Hulyaipole, the range rose sharply in May but fell in June – likely because Ukrainian forces shifted focus to the Kherson region and land routes to Crimea. However, the army is not fixated solely on isolating Crimea; it is expanding its aerial campaign in other directions. Russian countermeasures along the Pokrovsk axis and in the Kostiantynivka and Sloviansk areas have not yet halted this campaign.
