Zelensky: Operation Spiderweb wouldn’t have happened if Putin had agreed to a ceasefire

A few days after Ukraine’s spectacular victory in Operation Spiderweb, a military operation targeting Russian military aircraft at bases all over Russia, the Ukrainian president returned to the origins of the offensive.

In an interview with journalists following the attack, relayed by the Kyiv Independent, he claimed that the operation, which had been planned for over a year, would simply not have taken place if Vladimir Putin had agreed to a ceasefire at the various peace talks.

Ukraine’s surprise attack on June 1, carried out using drones boldly concealed and that could be opened remotely, then delivered on trucks parked near their targets across Russia, took the world by surprise.

Even Donald Trump, the President of the United States, had not been informed of this operation, which had been planned in secret for over a year by the Ukrainian armed forces, while Zelensky claimed that the attack was avoidable in his opinion: «If there had been a ceasefire, would the operation have taken place? No,» he said.

According to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Russia lost 41 military aircraft, including Tu-95s and Tu-22M3s, key bombers for launching long-range cruise missiles used against Ukraine, during Operation Spiderweb.

The damage inflicted on Russia is estimated at over 7 billion dollars, a major and, according to several experts, largely irreplaceable loss, as the destroyed bombers are among the rarest and most expensive strategic aircraft in the Russian arsenal.

Donald Trump declared on Truth Social that he talked for over an hour with the Russian president. According to him, they discussed the Ukrainian-led attack on aircraft stationed at Russian bases, as well as the multiple strikes carried out on both sides. Trump claimed Putin had promised to respond to these attacks, while adding: «It was a good conversation, but not a conversation that will lead to immediate Peace».