Ukrainian air strikes on Russian steel plants and chemical plants reveal images of flames! Russia says it shot down 531 drones

Several heavy industry and military supply centers in central and southern Russia were hit by large-scale Uzbek drone drone strikes from late at night on the 27th to early morning on the 28th local time. Not only were raging fires erupting around the largest steel manufacturing plant in Russia, but major chemical plants responsible for supplying key chemical raw materials for military explosives were also hit. Ukraine pointed out that the operation had impacted the Russian missile propellant supply chain, and Russia claimed to have intercepted 531 Ukrainian drones in the skies over more than 10 states.

According to foreign media, an air defense siren sounded in the Lipetsk region of Russia late at night on the 27th. Explosions and fire alarms were heard one after another in the adjacent area and the direction of the surrounding military airport at the Novolipetsk Steel Plant (NLMK), the largest in Russia, one of the top 20 largest in the world, and with an annual production capacity of 17 million tons of liquid steel. Intelligence pointed out that the Russian Pantsir air defense system failed to intercept, resulting in hits around the factory. Although Lipetsk Governor Igor Artamonov insisted that the state shot down 45 drones, the steel plant itself did not catch fire and the fire was only caused by the debris falling into the forest area. Photos of the fire at the scene have still gone viral on the Internet.

At the same time, a serious fire also broke out at the Novomoskovsk Nitrogen Fertilizer Plant (Azot), a subsidiary of EuroChem, a large European and Russian chemical company, in the city of Novomoskovsk in Tula Oblast, Russia. The plant mainly produces ammonia, nitric acid and methanol, and has long provided Russian military industrial companies with nitric acid precursors for the synthesis of high explosives. Tula Governor Dmitry Milyaev also admitted that the infrastructure of the industrial zone and surrounding residential buildings were damaged, and personnel were sent to the site to conduct environmental safety inspections.

The Russian Ministry of Defense subsequently issued a statement, claiming that the Russian military intercepted and shot down 531 Ukrainian drones in the skies over more than 10 states, including Moscow, Belgorod, Tula and Lipetsk; but Ukraine has not yet responded.