Ukraine will learn of Russia's preparations for a massive strike within a week — Le Monde

Russia prepares large-scale combined strikes against Ukraine well in advance, so the Ukrainian military picks up signs of these preparations about a week before the attack. 

According to Le Monde, Ukrainian and American intelligence agencies sometimes learn of such attacks a week before they are carried out.

It is noted that planning and carrying out massive strikes by Russia requires complex logistics. During massive strikes, the Russians deploy hundreds of drone operators, strategic aviation, the Black Sea Fleet and the Caspian Flotilla, missile and artillery units of the ground forces, as well as strategic missile forces when medium-range ballistic missiles, such as the “Oreshnik,” are launched.

Yuriy Ignat, head of the Communications Directorate of the Ukrainian Air Force, told reporters that the occupiers deployed several tens of thousands of military personnel for last weekend’s massive strikes. According to him, the first signs of an attack often come from strategic aviation.

“They need to prepare their strike assets before the battle begins: deliver cruise missiles, arm the aircraft, and redeploy them from their permanent bases to five or six operational runways. These operations, naturally, take hours, if not days,” he says.

A Ukrainian air defense expert named Ruslan told reporters that Ukraine had known about the massive attack on May 14 and its likely scale for six days. “The picture became clearer as the date approached, with the deployment of ships, submarines, and aircraft. Three hours before that, we had a clear idea of the number and types of projectiles,” the military official said.

A key constraint for Russia is the pace of missile and drone production. Preparing a combined strike involving up to 50 missiles and at least 500 drones could take about a week. This involves not only identifying targets and routes but also stockpiling the arsenal, preparing equipment, launchers, and crews.