Russian volunteer corps to carry out new operations within Russian borders – Ukraine’s intelligence chief

The Ministry of Defense's Main Directorate of Intelligence has created a comprehensive strategy to diminish the Russian Federation's military capabilities.

Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukraine's intelligence, discussed this in an interview with The Washington Post.

"We proposed a plan to reduce Russian (military—ed.) potential. It covers many aspects, such as the military industry…critical military facilities, their airfields, their command and control centers," the head of Ukraine's intelligence said.

According to Budanov, new operations by Russian volunteer corps on the territory of the Russian Federation and new drone attacks are also planned.

He added that the purpose of this plan is to show that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin cannot "protect the population from the penetration of war into Russia."

"When you sit, let's say, in St. Petersburg and see the war only on TV, you will always support [it – ed.]. But people start to get nervous when some object is [attacked – ed.] near their house," Budanov noted.

When questioned about the presence of intelligence operatives fighting against the "Wagner" PMC mercenaries in Africa, Budanov responded by saying that their department is actively carrying out operations to weaken the military capabilities of the Russian Federation, wherever possible.

"We conduct such operations to reduce the Russian military potential wherever possible. Why should Africa be an exception?" he replied.

It should be noted that on the night of April 9, unmanned aerial vehicles of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine attacked the Borisoglebsk training aviation center in the Voronezh region.

For reference:

On April 2, drones from Ukraine carried out their first attack on businesses in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. The explosions were audible in the "Alabuga" special economic zone, which houses numerous industrial and manufacturing facilities located 1,000 kilometers away from the Ukrainian border.

The factory that assembled Shahed drones was the attack's intended target, which Ukraine's intelligence agency carried out. According to Russian media reports, the drones also struck the dormitory where the factory employees resided. There are confirmed casualties as a result of the attack.

In addition, Ukrainian drones attacked an oil refinery in Tatarstan. This is not far from where the Shahed plant was also hit.

As Rubryka reported, in 2024, there were 15 drone attacks on 13 oil refineries in 9 regions of the Russian Federation. Of them, eight objects suffered significant damage.

On April 17, in the morning, Ukraine's intelligence strike drones attacked an aircraft factory in Kazan, a city within the region of Tatarstan in Russia. The factory is used by the enemy to manufacture and repair Tu-22M and Tu-160M bombers.