According to ISW experts, the recent events at the Engels airfield can be used as an excuse for this.
Allegedly Ukrainian strikes on military facilities far in the rear of Russian territory cause neuralgia in the military expert community of the Russian Federation.
According to the report of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), sources in the Russian Federation reported explosions near the Engels Air Base on the night of December 26, and the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation said that the air defense shot down a Ukrainian drone that was approaching this airfield at low altitude, and that as a result three Russian soldiers were killed.
As the Institute reported, in connection with this, Russian military experts criticized the internal capabilities of air defense and questioned the actions of the authorities.
One of the experts associated with Wagner PMC asked why the Russian air defense only “miraculously” prevents strikes “exactly over the airfield/military unit”, and noted that the Engels airfield is 500 km deep into Russian territory.
In turn, as ISW experts noted, the event was commented on by ex-commander of militants in Donbas, Ihor Girkin. In particular, he asked why Russia allows Ukrainian drones to penetrate so deeply into its territory.
The report indicates that many Russian military experts have criticized the technical capabilities of air defense systems and expressed concern about the authorities’ inability to protect Russia’s most important infrastructure.
The Institute’s experts concluded that the Russian information space will continue to use alleged attacks on military facilities far in the rear to call for an escalation of actions against Ukraine.
NP at military facilities in the Russian Federation
On December 5, explosions rang out at the Russian Engels airfield and at the air base in the Ryazan region.
On the night of December 6, an unknown drone attacked the airfield in Kursk, as a result of which an oil storage tank caught fire.
On the night of December 26, an explosion rang out in Engels. The Russian Ministry of Defense announced the loss of a Ukrainian drone.
