The loss of at least 10 strategic bombers poses a significant threat to Russia's missile attack capabilities against Ukraine. Here's why this is critical. Operation "Spider web" targeted Russian strategic bombers located thousands of miles from Ukraine.

Russia’s Defense Ministry in a statement confirmed the attacks, saying they damaged aircraft and sparked fires on air bases in the Irkutsk region, as well as the Murmansk region in the north. It said strikes were also repelled in the Amur region in Russia’s Far East and in the western regions of Ivanovo and Ryazan, the ministry said.

The attack injected some much-needed optimism into Ukraine, beleaguered by years of war and worn down by what many see as U.S. pressure to concede to Russian demands.