Ukraine fires drone barrage as Russia launches elections
Russia began a three-day parliamentary election while facing renewed Ukrainian drone attacks, including a large barrage directed at Moscow. Voting opened in the Far East and will run through Sunday for 450 seats in the State Duma amid the absence of registered antiwar parties.
Why It Matters
The ballot is the first Russian parliamentary election since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine and takes place with public opinion shaped by ongoing military strikes on both sides. The exclusion of antiwar candidates and continued strikes make the vote a potential indicator of domestic support for the Kremlin’s conduct of the war.
Key Facts
- drone barrage reported: More than 350 Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow, according to Moscow's mayor.
- drones shot down near Moscow: Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 64 drones were shot down as they approached the city.
- parliamentary seats: 450 seats in the State Duma are being contested.
- voting period: Voting runs for three days and closes at 18:00 GMT on Sunday.
- first time zones to vote: Polls opened in Kamchatka and Chukotka in Russia's Far East.
Russia opened a three-day parliamentary election on Friday to fill 450 seats in the State Duma, with polling starting in the Far East regions of Kamchatka and Chukotka. The vote comes amid the ongoing war with Ukraine and takes place after authorities barred the only antiwar party, Yabloko, from the ballot in August; only parties that support the conflict were registered to run. President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party is widely expected to win the largest share of seats, though observers and officials are watching margins and the performance of other parties.
As polls opened, Ukraine launched a significant drone campaign aimed at Russian territory. Moscow’s mayor reported that more than 350 Ukrainian drones targeted the capital early Friday, and most were intercepted at an outer defensive perimeter; 64 were shot down as they approached the city, he said. Kyiv’s forces also reported strikes on the Yaroslavl oil refinery and on a military airfield in Rostov that damaged aircraft and helicopters, and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted unspecified positive results in the Black Sea.
Russian forces continued air and missile strikes inside Ukraine. The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces struck a Nova Poshta logistics hub near Odesa and a cargo vessel at the port of Chornomorsk, describing both as military targets. Ukrainian regional authorities reported a Russian drone attack that injured five people, including three children, in the Kyiv region. Russia also reported striking three drone manufacturing facilities and the De Novo data centre near Kyiv the previous day.
The election is being held under restrictions including bans on protests and the exclusion of antiwar political options, and Moscow has arranged voting in occupied areas of Ukraine. With the conflict causing heavy casualties and wide damage on both sides, authorities in Kyiv and Moscow have continued attacks that Kyiv says aim to bring the war’s effects home to Russian society, while Russia says its strikes target Ukrainian military and economic infrastructure. Greenpeace additionally reported concerns that Russia was sabotaging power supply lines at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, underscoring the broader infrastructure risks during the conflict.
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Original source: Al Jazeera