Ukraine destroyed nine Russian helicopters on the eastern front early Tuesday, deploying longer-range missiles recently provided by the US government for the first time.
The attack, dubbed “Operation Dragonfly,” targeted Russian forces in occupied Berdyansk on the Sea of Azov, as well as an airfield in Luhansk in the Donbas region.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed in an evening address that his forces had used the long-range ATACMS — Army Tactical Missile Systems — saying the weapons “executed very accurately” and “have proven themselves.”
In addition to the Russian helicopters, Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces claimed that a Russian anti-aircraft missile system and an ammunition warehouse were destroyed and runways were damaged.
“Losses in the enemy’s manpower amount to dozens of dead and wounded. Bodies are still being pulled from the rubble,” the service wrote on Telegram.
“ATACMS is already with us. The airfield in Berdyansk with enemy equipment was hit by them. Thanks to our partners! And Russians are already publishing photos,” Ukrainian lawmaker Oleksiy Goncharenko posted on X.
President Biden greenlit the delivery of the missile systems last month after repeated requests from Kyiv, but US officials had declined to say when or how many systems would be provided.
ATACMS can hit targets at a range of up to 180 miles, though the version sent to Ukraine have a shorter range and carry cluster munitions, which, when fired, open in the air, releasing hundreds of bomblets rather than a single warhead.
Biden had long been reluctant to ship ATACMS and other advanced offensive weaponry to Ukraine, citing the possibility that Kyiv could use them to strike targets inside Russia, escalating the conflict.
Meanwhile, Russia is throwing more units into its effort to take a key eastern Ukraine city, Western analysts say, after apparent setbacks that have slowed its dayslong onslaught.
The attempt to storm Avdiivka, a heavily defended city that stands in the way of Moscow’s ambition of securing control of the entire Donetsk region, is Russia’s most significant offensive operation in Ukraine since the start of the year, the British Ministry of Defense said Tuesday.
The Biden administration has been pushing Congress to authorize additional aid to the war-torn nation due to dwindling funds.
However, legislators have been hamstrung by the lack of a speaker of the House of Representatives, preventing the lower chamber from conducting other business.