Ukraine launched what Moscow’s mayor described as the biggest-ever drone attack on the Russian capital on Sunday, as Russia entered the final day of a parliamentary election that President Vladimir Putin has presented as a test of public support for the war in Ukraine.
Two people were killed in the surrounding Moscow region, while the capital’s oil refinery was also hit, local authorities said. Reuters witnesses heard explosions in Moscow and saw plumes of smoke rising from the refinery site, although the extent of the damage was not immediately clear. Ukraine did not immediately comment.
“The biggest attack by enemy drones has been repelled. Since yesterday, more than 1,600 drones have been shot down across all fronts. Of these, 450 were approaching Moscow,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said in a statement on Telegram.
One drone struck a residential building, but none of its residents was killed, Sobyanin said.
“This unprecedented attack was clearly planned with the aim of disrupting the elections. The enemy did not succeed,” he said.
Election seen as test of support for Putin
The State Duma election is the first since Russia launched its full-scale war in Ukraine in February 2022.
The ruling United Russia party is expected to retain its dominance in a political system that critics say does not tolerate dissent. The Kremlin is likely to present the outcome as evidence of public support for Putin’s policies and the war in Ukraine.
Most anti-war candidates were barred from the ballot. Candidates from the liberal Yabloko party who were allowed to run said they feared for their freedom after courts handed lengthy prison sentences to two senior party figures over comments about the conflict that authorities deemed illegal.
Discrediting the army or spreading what authorities regard as fake news can result in lengthy prison sentences.
In a small act of defiance, Yabloko leader Nikolai Rybakov deliberately spoiled his ballot paper by writing the party’s name and the slogan “For peace”.
The Kremlin says national unity and some censorship are necessary during what it calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine.
It describes the conflict as part of an existential struggle with a hostile West and says Ukrainian intelligence services and other enemies are increasing efforts to stir unrest inside Russia.
Opposition parties could benefit
Russian electoral officials said on Saturday that Moscow’s online voting system had come under cyberattack. Kyiv, which has suspended elections under martial law, has dismissed the Russian vote as a “pseudo election”.
Putin on Friday also accused Ukraine of trying to interfere in the election, citing what he said was a Ukrainian strike on the home of an election official in the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region.
The strike reportedly killed Elena Astanina, the official. Reuters could not independently verify the details, and there was no comment from Kyiv.
Despite expectations of a predictable election outcome, the NEST think-tank in Berlin said the vote could still produce difficult moments for the Kremlin amid economic strain.
“The consequences of the war are increasingly being felt within the country, and accumulated anxiety and frustration may translate into votes for the systemic opposition parties that the Kremlin has allowed to remain on the ballot,” it said in a note.
The think-tank said the Communist Party and New People party could attract votes that authorities would prefer to go to United Russia. Both parties have consistently voted with United Russia on major issues.
Putin had told the nation in a televised address before the election that the vote would demonstrate support for Russian troops fighting in Ukraine.
“Your choice, and your will, will once again demonstrate that millions of people stand behind our soldiers, that we are a united people bound together by shared values, historical memory, and love for our homeland, and that no one will succeed in dividing or intimidating us,” Putin said.
Initial results were expected to begin emerging at around 1800 GMT on Sunday, with more complete results expected on Monday.
