Russia says it will continue retaliating against Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory, with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova insisting Moscow does not seek escalation but will respond to threats against civilians and infrastructure. Her warning comes amid another major exchange of long-range drone and missile strikes between Russia and Ukraine.
INR Report: Based on reporting by RT HERE.
Moscow Says "Escalation Is Not Our Choice"
Speaking to Izvestia, Zakharova accused Kiev of showing what she described as a "complete unwillingness to negotiate" while increasing attacks against Russian civilians and infrastructure.
She said Russian forces would continue responding proportionately to emerging threats and pursuing the objectives established by President Vladimir Putin.
"Escalation is not our choice," Zakharova said.
She argued that progress towards ending the conflict depended on Kiev and its Western supporters abandoning what she called the "dangerous illusion" of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia.
Her comments represent Moscow's position and come as both sides continue conducting large-scale attacks far beyond the immediate battlefield.
Another Major Exchange of Long-Range Strikes
Zakharova's remarks followed another significant exchange of missiles and drones.
Russia's Defence Ministry said its forces launched a large-scale overnight attack against military-industrial facilities in and around Kiev.
According to Moscow, the targets included factories involved in manufacturing long-range drones and cruise-missile components, along with storage facilities containing fuel, lubricants, UAV components and dual-use goods.
Ukraine, meanwhile, launched another major drone attack against Russian territory.
Russia's Defence Ministry claimed its air defences destroyed 726 Ukrainian UAVs across 20 regions overnight.
Those figures are Russian military claims and are not independently verified in the RT report.
Civilian Infrastructure Increasingly Caught in the Conflict
Moscow has repeatedly accused Ukraine of deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure and residential areas with long-range drones.
Russia characterises many of these attacks as terrorism and argues they are intended to compensate for Ukrainian setbacks on the battlefield.
Ukraine and its Western supporters have maintained that attacks against legitimate military and military-supporting infrastructure inside Russia form part of Ukraine's right to defend itself.
The increasingly blurred distinction between military, industrial and dual-use infrastructure is becoming one of the most dangerous aspects of the conflict.
Energy facilities, manufacturing plants, transport infrastructure and warehouses can have both civilian and military functions, creating competing claims over whether individual targets are legitimate.
Putin Promises "Mirror-Like" Responses
President Vladimir Putin acknowledged on Wednesday that Ukrainian attacks against Russian industrial facilities were causing damage.
However, he said they had not resulted in "critical consequences."
Putin had previously warned in July that Russia's responses to Ukrainian attacks would be "mirror-like" and potentially "several times more powerful."
The latest Russian strikes suggest Moscow intends to maintain that retaliatory strategy.
The difficulty is that retaliation can itself produce further retaliation, creating an escalation cycle in which each side portrays its own attacks as responses to the actions of the other.
Western Support Remains Central to Moscow's Argument
Zakharova's warning was directed not only at Kiev but also at Ukraine's Western supporters.
Russia increasingly argues that Western governments have moved beyond simply providing defensive assistance to Ukraine through their supply of long-range weapons, intelligence, targeting capabilities and other military support.
Moscow's position is that deeper Western involvement risks transforming those governments into participants in the conflict.
Western governments reject that interpretation and maintain that military assistance allows Ukraine to defend itself against Russia's military operations.
That disagreement over where assistance ends and participation begins is becoming increasingly important as Ukrainian weapons acquire greater range and attacks penetrate deeper into Russian territory.
Negotiations Remain Distant
Zakharova linked Russia's military response directly to the prospects for negotiations.
Her comments suggest Moscow believes meaningful negotiations will remain difficult while Ukraine and its Western supporters continue pursuing what Russia regards as a strategy aimed at defeating it militarily.
Ukraine, conversely, has maintained that any settlement must protect its sovereignty and security.
These fundamentally different starting positions remain one of the largest obstacles to a negotiated settlement.
Meanwhile, increasingly large exchanges of long-range weapons demonstrate that the conflict is continuing to expand technologically and geographically even as diplomatic efforts continue.
Does This Affect New Zealand?
Yes, primarily through New Zealand's continuing political and military support for Ukraine and its close security relationships with Western partners.
New Zealand is geographically distant from the conflict, but escalation involving increasingly sophisticated Western-supplied weapons carries broader international consequences.
The central concern is no longer simply what happens on the front line.
As Ukraine expands its ability to strike deep inside Russia and Moscow promises increasingly powerful retaliation, the risk grows that an attack, miscalculation or direct involvement by a Western state could widen the conflict.
For New Zealand, supporting Ukraine does not remove the need to assess escalation risks carefully.
The national interest lies in supporting international security while also encouraging diplomacy, transparency and clearly defined limits that reduce the possibility of a Russia-NATO confrontation.
Independent reporting. Original context. Credited sources.
Source
RT — Russia vows continued retaliation for Ukrainian strikes against civilians — Published 20 August 2026; updated 20 August 2026
https://www.rt.com/russia/644435-zakharova-warns-retalation-ukraione/