Moscow Mayor Says 8,670 Drones Tried to Hit Capital in August
Moscow’s mayor claimed that Ukraine launched 8,670 drones against the Russian capital and the surrounding region in August, with 795 shot down en route to Moscow. The staggering number, if accurate, is on par with the total number of Russian drones launched across the entirety of Ukraine in July 2026.
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin stated on Wednesday that Ukraine launched a total of 8,670 drones against the Moscow region during August. According to Sobyanin's Telegram update, the majority of these drones were intercepted "on the distant approaches," with 795 drones destroyed while en route to Moscow. The figures were tallied between 8:30 a.m. on August 1 and 8:30 a.m. on September 1.
If verified, this count, excluding drone attacks on refineries elsewhere in Russia, would be comparable to the 8,653 drones Russia fired at Ukraine in July 2026, as reported by Ukraine's Ministry of Defense.
An animation shared by Sobyanin showcased a massive drone swarm launched in the latter half of August, approaching the Russian capital from the eastern sector through the neighboring Vladimir region. However, it remains uncertain whether the animation illustrates confirmed flight paths or serves as a more fictional representation of the drone strikes.
Ukraine has increasingly targeted Russian logistics, including high-profile attacks on the retail giant Wildberries, whose warehouses were struck multiple times. On August 16, a significant fire erupted at a Wildberries logistics facility in the Moscow region. Two days later, over 600 drones descended upon Moscow and its surrounding areas in one of the most substantial Ukrainian strikes, striking a Wildberries warehouse in Bogorodsky district.
President Volodymyr Zelensky cautioned airlines and foreign entities about heightened aviation risks over Russian cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg as the drone war intensifies between Kyiv and Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed these concerns, attributing them to "state terrorism" by Kyiv. The European Union also condemned Russia for the same following the discovery of explosive drones at Germany's Leipzig airport.
In mid-August, Ukraine reportedly devised a plan to incapacitate Russian airports with over 1,000 AI-equipped drones in a single swarm; however, these preparations reportedly stalled following the resignation of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
Written by urgent.news from Kyiv Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
