Mike Baker
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Appearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
consulate.
But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
We start with the Ukraine conflict.
Now, for years, Ukraine has struggled with a shortage of air defense missiles, forcing Kyiv to make difficult choices about what it could protect and what it couldn't.
Now, according to new intelligence estimates, Russia may be facing the same dilemma.
That possibility came into focus this week after Ukraine launched its largest air raid on Moscow since the war began, striking a major oil refinery and exposing what may be growing cracks in Russia's air defenses.
According to Ukrainian officials, drones struck multiple locations across the Russian capital early Thursday morning.
including the Kapotnya oil refinery in southeastern Moscow.
The facility is one of the most important pieces of energy infrastructure in the city, supplying roughly 40% of Moscow's gasoline and about half of its diesel fuel.
Videos posted online appeared to show large plumes of smoke rising from the refinery as emergency crews responded to the scene.
The attack also disrupted operations at several airports serving the capital and briefly halted traffic near the refinery.
Russian authorities claimed they intercepted hundreds of Ukrainian drones overnight, though those figures could not be independently verified.
Even so, enough drones appear to have penetrated Russian defenses to inflict meaningful damage.
That oil refinery, by the way, is only about 10 miles from the Kremlin.
For Ukrainian President Zelensky, the message was straightforward.
He described the attack as retaliation for Russia's recent missile and drone strikes on Kyiv, including damage to the historic Pechersk Lavra monastery complex.
In essence, Ukraine is making the argument that if Russia continues targeting Ukrainian cities, then Moscow itself will increasingly become a target.
But while the images of smoke rising over the Russian capital grabbed the headlines, the more important question is how those drones managed to get there in the first place.
That's where a new report from CBS News becomes particularly interesting.
According to several Ukrainian officials familiar with intelligence assessments,