Explosions and fires have been reported in several regions of Russia after a wave of Ukrainian drone attacks, as US President Donald Trump said he would position nuclear submarines "closer to Russia", days before the end of a deadline he has given Moscow to reach a peace deal with Kiev.
Ukraine's Security Service said on August 2 that its drones had struck an air base storing Shahed drones in Primorsko-Aktarsk and the Elektroprilad military base in Penza.
The Ukrainian military has also reported attacks on oil refineries.
Authorities in the Samara region of Russia have announced that there have been restrictions on air flights.
The regional governor has confirmed that attacks on an industrial facility in Novokubishevsk have temporarily halted internet service on mobile phones.
He said a civilian was killed by the debris of a drone.
In occupied Crimea, it has been reported that the Kerch Bridge – which connects the peninsula to Russia – has been blocked for more than five hours and explosions have been heard in Feodosia and Kerch.
The Russian Defense Ministry has reported attacks in eight regions and claimed to have shot down or destroyed 112 drones.
Russia, on the other hand, has launched air strikes in Ukraine with 53 drones, according to the Ukrainian air force. The Ukrainian military said 45 of them were shot down.
In Kherson, a 68-year-old woman was killed, while a 41-year-old man was injured.
These attacks have been carried out amid an escalation of rhetoric between Washington and Moscow.
US President Donald Trump has said he has ordered the deployment of two nuclear submarines near Russia, following threats over the war in Ukraine from former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
Trump did not specify whether the submarines have nuclear capabilities or are armed with nuclear weapons.
"I just want to make sure that his words are just words and nothing more," Trump told Newsmax television.
He referred to a post by Medvedev on social media, where he accused the United States of using the "ultimatum game" in response to Trump's announcement that he had shortened the deadline for Russia to end the war in Ukraine from 50 to 10 days.
In his post on X on July 28, Medvedev wrote that "every new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war."
He has called on Trump not to follow the path of former US President Joe Biden, whom Moscow has often accused of escalating tensions with Russia.
After Trump told him to be careful with his words, Medvedev went even further, reminding the American president of the Russian "Dead Hand" system, which is designed to automatically activate the nuclear missile system if the country's leadership were to fall.
Trump's deadline for Moscow is August 8, but it is still unclear what will happen after that.
He has spoken about the possibility of imposing sanctions on Russia as well as secondary tariffs on countries that import Russian oil.
Considering that secondary measures would affect China and India, some analysts have expressed skepticism about whether Washington will take action. /REL (A2 Televizion)
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