Key facts
- Ukrainian drones reportedly struck industrial sites in Tolyatti and Taganrog, Russia, on September 12.
- A rubber manufacturing plant in Tolyatti was reportedly hit, with footage showing fires and smoke.
- A car manufacturing plant in Taganrog was also reportedly targeted.
- Previous drone strikes on a Tolyatti rubber factory damaged products used in missile fuel.
- The strikes are part of Ukraine's campaign against Russian industries supplying the military.
Ukrainian forces appear to have conducted drone strikes on industrial targets in the Russian cities of Tolyatti and Taganrog on September 12. Telegram channels reported that a rubber manufacturing plant in Tolyatti, a city known for its automotive industry and located approximately 900 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, was hit. Footage shared by residents purportedly showed drones flying over the city with a building on fire. Another report suggested damage to a residential building from a downed drone.
Separately, a car manufacturing plant in Taganrog, a city about 40 kilometers from the Ukrainian border on the Sea of Azov, was also reportedly targeted. Resident footage depicted large fires near an airfield, with smoke plumes visible. NASA's FIRMS system indicated multiple fires in the city.
This follows a previous incident on June 12, when Ukraine's General Staff confirmed a drone attack on a rubber factory in Tolyatti, noting that its products were used in the production of rocket fuel. The latest strikes are part of Kyiv's ongoing campaign to target Russian manufacturing industries that supply the nation's military. On September 9, Ukraine's Special Operations Forces reportedly conducted a strike on a natural gas facility, which was described as the deepest strike into Russia to date in the conflict, occurring 3,200 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. President Volodymyr Zelensky had previously warned that Russian airspace would become effectively closed due to Ukrainian drone activity.