“No threat to citizens”
Residents near Engels reported hearing an airstrip alert and a loud blast on a Monday morning, with some describing the sound as an explosion in the airspace above the town. Local officials stated there was no danger to civilians in the area and that residential districts remained undamaged, while authorities investigated the incident at a nearby military facility.
The Governor of the Saratov Region, Roman Busargin, posted that there was no emergency in the city’s residential zones and urged calm among residents. He cautioned that rumors about mass evacuations were unfounded and said critical civilian infrastructure had not suffered damage. Law enforcement teams reviewed footage and data to verify what occurred near Engels airbase.
Later, the Defense Ministry confirmed that three servicemen were killed when wreckage from a Ukrainian drone fell close to the military airspace in the Saratov region. The ministry noted that at about 1:35 a.m. Moscow time on December 26, a Ukrainian drone was intercepted at low altitude as it approached the Engels airfield. The release cited by state agencies indicated that no aviation equipment at the base was damaged during the incident.
Busargin offered condolences to the families and friends of the deceased soldiers and pledged full support to the affected families as investigations continued.
Attack on December 5
The latest drone event is not the first attempt by Ukrainian forces to strike Engels. On December 5, Kyiv reportedly targeted the Dyagilevo air base in the Ryazan region and the Engels facility in the Saratov region with Soviet-era unmanned aerial vehicles. Russian authorities later stated that the UAV was intercepted, but the wreckage caused several casualties and minor damage to a pair of aircraft. The Defense Ministry described the incident as an attack on both Engels and Dyagilevo, asserting that the strikes targeted military facilities with the aim of degrading command and control structures.
In the ministry’s account, Russia responded with what it described as a decisive blow against Ukraine’s military command and control system and related defense sites. Officials said multiple facilities linked to command, control, and logistics were hit, with the goal of disrupting military communications, energy networks, and the broader defense complex. The ministry asserted that the operation also hindered the transport of reserves, foreign weapons, military equipment, and ammunition to front lines.
The defense ministry added that the strike aimed to blunt Ukrainian operational capabilities and to degrade coordination between military units and their logistical networks across designated targets.
US participation
On December 7, the U.S. secretary of state stated that Washington was not assisting Ukraine in striking Russian territory. He emphasized that there was no encouragement for Ukraine to attack Russian soil, nor any provision of means to pursue such actions. The same day, a German government spokesperson described Russian bases as legitimate targets and signaled that Ukraine has the right to self-defense under international law, noting that Kyiv could extend actions beyond its own borders if necessary. The spokesperson suggested Berlin recognized that Russian airbases had suffered damage, and indicated support for Ukraine’s right to defend itself under Article 51 of the UN Charter.
The following day, a Kremlin spokesperson criticized the earlier remarks, arguing that while they did not resolve the conflict, they also did not help reduce tensions. On December 11, a White House national security official stated that the United States was not pressuring Ukraine to strike inside Russia, nor directing operations inside Ukrainian territory controlled by Russia. The official claimed that Washington assists Kyiv in defending its own territory, including areas lost during the ongoing confrontation, without compelling action inside Russia itself.