The covert operation was described as one for the “history books” by Ukraine’s president. According to Ukrainian officials, nearly a third of Moscow’s strategic bomber fleet was destroyed or damaged with cheaply made drones sneaked into Russian territory in the span of a few hours on Sunday.

It could also make Moscow behave even more aggressively toward Ukraine as the two countries struggle to find common ground in peace talks.

Though the knock-on effects are unclear, some military commentators have called the strike Russia's "Pearl Harbor." Hopes for direct peace talks, which resume Monday, remain low.

After too many nights of pulling children from the rubble of Russian drone strikes, the weekend’s devastating attacks on Moscow’s military pride mark a brief respite for Ukrainian morale, and yet another twist of the unexpected.

Ukraine unleashed more than a hundred drones smuggled deep into Russia in what it called its most damaging attack yet.

The head of Ukraine's SBU sec urity service, Lieutenant General Vasyl Malyuk, said on Monday that Kyiv hit 41 aircraft, including Tu-95 and Tu-22 strategic bom bers Russia has used extensively to fire long-range missiles at Ukraine.

Speaking of firestorms, a massive eruption of Mount Etna in Sicily today sent tourists of the Italian island fleeing, as the volcano ejected a plume of hot gases, ash and rock that was “several kilometers high” according to Italian authorities. But no one was harmed in the eruption, so tourists can resume enjoying la dolce vita.

The drone strikes on Russian air force bases weaken Moscow’s ability to wage war on its neighbor and undermine its capacity to threaten more distant rivals.