White House Responds to Ukraine’s Major Strike on Russian Bombers

By Staff, Agencies

The White House has issued its first reaction to Ukraine’s daring “Cobweb” operation, which targeted dozens of Russian nuclear-capable bombers across multiple regions on June 1.

“This war needs to come to an end,” said Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on June 3. “Too many lives have been lost on both sides.” She reiterated President Donald Trump’s consistent position that the conflict should be resolved diplomatically: “The president wants this war to end at the negotiating table, and he has made that clear to both leaders, publicly and privately.”

Ukrainian intelligence chief Vasyl Malyuk revealed that 41 strategic bombers—including Tu-95s, Tu-22M3s, and Tu-160s—along with A-50 AWACS aircraft, were destroyed or damaged in the operation. The multi-base attack reportedly caused over $7 billion in losses to Russia’s air fleet.

The strikes were carried out using 117 FPV kamikaze drones launched from concealed positions in trucks, targeting four major air bases across three Russian time zones: Belaya [Irkutsk], Dyagilevo [Ryazan], Olenya [Murmansk], and Ivanovo [central Russia]. The attack was the result of 18 months of planning and was personally overseen by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“This was not only a devastating strike against enemy aircraft but a symbolic blow to the power and terror mechanisms of the Russian Federation,” said Malyuk.

Approximately 34% of Russia’s cruise missile carriers were neutralized in the raid. With Russia no longer producing these aircraft and many already unserviceable, replacements are unlikely.

The operation coincided with the 29th anniversary of Ukraine's handover of its nuclear arsenal and strategic bombers to Russia under the 1994 Budapest Memorandum—an agreement that guaranteed Ukraine's territorial integrity in exchange for nuclear disarmament.