Operation Spider Web: Ukraine’s Drone Triumph, Trump’s Silence, and Putin’s Looming Retaliation, By Chris Knight and Charles Taylor (Florida)
On June 1, 2025, Ukraine pulled off a stunning coup with Operation Spider Web, a drone assault that torched over 40 Russian warplanes across five air bases, costing Putin $7 billion and gutting a third of his strategic bomber fleet. Hailed as "Russia's Pearl Harbor," this 18-month covert operation has sparked a firestorm over whether President Donald Trump was in the loop, with MAGA loyalists swearing he was blindsided by globalist warmongers. As Putin reels from this humiliation, he's poised to strike back,not with nukes yet, but a massive cyberattack on the U.S. could cripple infrastructure and prove he's deadly serious. From a nationalist perspective, this is a globalist trap, dragging America into a fight it didn't pick while our borders bleed and culture crumbles. Putin's response could be the spark that lights a digital war, and the West's fragility is on full display.
Operation Spider Web was a masterclass in covert warfare, led by Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) under President Volodymyr Zelensky's iron grip. Targeting five Russian air bases, Belaya (Irkutsk), Olenya (Murmansk), Dyagilevo (Ryazan), Ivanovo Severny (Ivanovo), and Ukrainka (Amur), the attack spanned thousands of miles and five time zones. Over 18 months, 117 drones were smuggled into Russia, hidden in truck-mounted wooden cabins with remote-controlled roofs. On June 1, these drones launched, obliterating 41 aircraft, including Tu-95 and Tu-22M3 bombers and A-50 surveillance planes, vital for Russia's nuclear and missile capabilities. The SBU claimed 34% of Russia's strategic bombers were hit, with losses so severe that some planes, like the Tu-95, can't be replaced due to discontinued production.
Videos of blazing tarmacs flooded Telegram, showing drones, possibly autonomous, diving with precision. Ukrainian operatives, embedded near Russia's FSB headquarters, slipped away unscathed. The Institute for the Study of War noted Russia's missile strikes on Ukraine may falter temporarily, while The Wall Street Journal predicted FSB purges over this intelligence failure, stoking Putin's distrust. Zelensky, calling it a "history book" moment, stressed it was Ukraine's solo act, a swipe at Trump's claim that Kyiv has "no cards" without U.S. aid. This was a bold checkmate, but it's lit a fuse under Putin's regime.
Did Trump know? That's the question splitting MAGA and fuelling X rants. Kyiv Post and Fox News report the White House and Pentagon were caught flat-footed, with Trump golfing in Virginia during the strikes. Zelensky's airtight secrecy, only five people knew the full plan, backs claims of no U.S. foreknowledge. CNN and The Hill confirm the Pentagon learned post-strike, aligning with MAGA's narrative that Trump was sidelined by NATO and Ukraine's globalist backers.
MAGA's united front, Trump was clueless, reflects their distrust of the "deep state" and Zelensky, seen as a globalist pawn. Newsweek (May 27, 2025) notes MAGA's split: some demand Russian sanctions, others urge neutrality to avoid NATO's "war machine." Trump's March 2025 jab at Putin as "CRAZY" for bombing Ukraine shows he's threading the needle, projecting strength without committing to escalation. His silence on Spider Web keeps him above the fray, but it's a risky play as Putin plots revenge.
Putin's humiliation demands a response, and Russia's hawks are baying for blood. State media downplayed Spider Web, but Kremlin mouthpieces branded it "terrorism," with bloggers pushing for tactical nukes. Russia's 5,460 warheads, including the RS-28 Sarmat ICBM, loom large, per Zee News. Putin's 2024 nuclear doctrine greenlights strikes against conventional attacks backed by nuclear powers, but analysts like Philip O'Brien in The Times say nukes are a bluff, for now. A nuclear response risks NATO's wrath, and Putin knows it.
Instead, a massive cyberattack on the U.S. is likely, showcasing strength without apocalyptic fallout. Russia's cyber prowess is proven: the 2020 SolarWinds hack hit nine U.S. agencies, and The Guardian (2025) reports Moscow's hacker teams targeting U.S. grids and banks. Trump's March 2025 pause on Cyber Command operations against Russia, per The Washington Post, leaves America exposed. A strike on Wall Street, power plants, or election systems, akin to the 2021 Colonial Pipeline hack, could cost billions, disrupt lives, and humiliate Trump. X's @InfoR00M warns Spider Web risks "digital Armageddon," predicting Putin will hit U.S. infrastructure to expose Western weakness.
Alternatives include pounding Ukraine, as in July 2024's multi-city strikes, or testing missiles like the Oreshnik, per Newsweek. But a U.S.-focused cyberattack maximises global impact, forcing Trump to react while staying below nuclear thresholds. If Trump disavows Ukraine, per Foreign Policy, Putin may soften the blow; if not, expect a digital sledgehammer.
Nationalists see Spider Web as a globalist scheme to derail Trump's peace push and drag America into war. The timing, hours before Istanbul talks, reeks of sabotage,serving NATO's agenda to bleed Russia while America pays the price. A Russian cyberattack could cripple U.S. grids or banks, threatening sovereignty already strained by open borders
Ukraine's defenders, like Senator Lindsey Graham, call Spider Web a legitimate hit on military targets, not escalation, as Russia's bombers were killing civilians, per Kyiv Post. They argue Trump's silence emboldens Putin. But this ignores the risk of Russian retaliation hitting U.S. soil, a cost nationalists reject. Some say a cyberattack is unlikely, fearing NATO's response, but Russia's covert hacks show boldness, and Trump's cyber pause invites it. Others dismiss MAGA's "no knowledge" claim as posturing, yet Ukraine's secrecy, confirmed by multiple sources, backs Zelensky's solo act.
Operation Spider Web was Ukraine's masterstroke, torching Russia's air force and ego in a single night. Trump's ignorance, backed by MAGA and hard evidence, exposes a globalist plot to sabotage his peace vision, with NATO and Zelensky pulling the strings. Putin's retaliation is imminent, not nukes yet, but a massive cyberattack could plunge U.S. or even British cities into darkness, crash markets, or rig elections, proving Moscow's might. Nationalists say: America must condemn Ukraine, harden cyber defenses, and break free from NATO's war lust. The West, rotting from migrants, censorship, and cultural suicide, can't afford this fight. If Trump doesn't act, Putin's digital dagger will strike, and the globalist trap will snap shut, leaving America to bleed for a war it never chose. And the effects will kick on to countries like Australia too.
https://michaeltsnyder.substack.com/p/7-hard-questions-that-everyone-should? il
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