Russian forces are increasingly using mass Shahed drone strikes to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses to facilitate successful missile strikes amidst high Ukrainian Shahed interception rates. Ukrainian forces intercepted 91.5 percent of all drones, 36.7 percent of Iskander-M and S-300 ballistic missiles, and 81.5 percent of cruise missiles in Russia’s overnight strike.[10] Ukrainian Ministry of Defense (MoD) advisor on defense technology and drone and electronic warfare (EW) expert Serhiy “Flash” Beskrestnov reported that Ukraine’s Shahed drone interception rate exceeded the six-month average and that drone interceptors downed over 40 percent of all intercepted Shaheds.[11] Beskrestnov also stated that the Russian combined strike package included jet-powered Geran-3 and Geran-4 drones and noted that the flight pattern and a relatively low number of remote-controlled Shaheds indicate that Russian forces intended to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses before launching the missiles. Russian forces have previously launched a massive number of drones, for which Ukrainian forces have a high interception rate, over an extended period of time, before launching ballistic missiles, which Ukrainian forces struggle to intercept.[12] Russia’s combined strike package included the most missiles since December 2024, taking advantage of the global Patriot interceptor missile shortage since Ukraine relies on Patriot systems to intercept ballistic missiles.[13]

Russian nationalist milbloggers dismissed the strikes as mostly symbolic and noted that the strikes come amidst Russian failures on the battlefield. Russian milbloggers heavily criticized the May 24 strikes as expensive but not militarily useful and that the Oreshnik strike against Bila Tserkva did not have a clear militarily significant target.[14] Milbloggers further criticized the strikes as expensive and as not contributing to the Russian war effort, while Russian forces are under-resourced and unable to advance on the frontline.[15]