1 Institute for the Study of War & AEI’s Critical Threats Project 2022
Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment,
June 26
Karolina Hird, Kateryna Stepanenko, Mason Clark, and Grace Mappes
June 26, 4:30pm ET
Click here to see ISW's interactive map of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
This map is updated daily alongside the static maps present in this report.
Russian forces conducted a massive missile strike against the
Schevchenkivskyi district of Kyiv on June 26, likely to coincide with the
ongoing summit of G7 leaders.
This is the first such major strike on Kyiv since late
April and is likely a direct response to Western leaders discussing aid to Ukraine at the
ongoing G7 summit, much like the previous strikes on April 29 during UN Secretary-
General Antonio Guterres’ visit to Kyiv.
Ukrainian government sources reported that
Russian forces targeted infrastructure in the Shevchenkivskyi district using X101 missiles
fired from Tu-95 and Tu-160 bombers over the Caspian Sea and noted the Russian attack
was an attempt to “show off” their capabilities.
Open-source Twitter account
GeoConfirmed stated that the strikes targeted the general vicinity of the Artem State Joint-
Stock Holding Company, a manufacturer of air-to-air missiles, automated air-guided
missile training and maintenance systems, anti-tank guided missiles, and aircraft
equipment.
GeoConfirmed noted that Russian forces likely fired the missiles from the
maximum possible range, which would have interfered with GPS and radar correlation
and resulted in the strike hitting civilian infrastructure, and additionally hypothesized
some of the missiles may have been fired from Russian-occupied southern Ukraine.
Russian forces likely targeted the Artem Plant as a means of posturing against Western
military aid to Ukraine during the G7 summit and inflicted additional secondary damage
to residential infrastructure.
The Kremlin continues to manipulate Russian legislation to carry out “covert
mobilization” to support operations in Ukraine without conducting full
mobilization. The Russian State Duma announced plans to review an amendment to the
law on military service on June 28 that would allow military officials to offer contracts to
young men immediately upon “coming of age” or graduating high school, thus
circumventing the need to complete military service as conscripts.
Head of the Ukrainian
Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) Kyrylo Budanov stated on June 25 that the Kremlin
is carrying out “covert mobilization” and that due to continuous Russian mobilization
efforts, Ukrainian forces cannot wait for the Russians to exhaust their offensive potential
before launching counteroffensives.
Budanov remarked that the Kremlin has already
committed 330,000 personnel to the war, which constitutes over a third of the entirety of
the Russian Armed Forces, and that Russian President Vladimir Putin will face substantial
domestic and social opposition if he increases this number by carrying out general (as
opposed to covert) mobilization, as ISW has previously assessed.
Colonel-General Genady Zhidko, current director of Russia’s Military-
Political Directorate, is likely in overall command of Russian forces in
Ukraine. Zhidko sat next to and conferred with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu
during an inspection of Russian ground forces in Ukraine on June 26, though Zhidko’s
nameplate was notably blurred out by the Russian Ministry of Defense and his position
has not been officially confirmed, unlike the commanders of Russia's two force groupings
