Ukraine strikes Russian oil refinery as drone attacks intensify
Ukraine kept up its large-scale drone campaign against Russia overnight, setting fire to a major oil refinery in the country's south and killing at least two people, Russian authorities said on Sunday.
Kyiv has stepped up its long-range drone attacks on Russian energy infrastructure and military facilities in recent months in an effort to disrupt fuel supplies, hamper military logistics and pressure the Kremlin to negotiate an end to the war.
Debris from intercepted Ukrainian drones ignited a fire at the oil refinery in Slavyansk-na-Kubani, in Russia's Krasnodar region east of occupied Crimea, according to regional Governor Veniamin Kondratyev. One person was killed in the town, while another was injured in a nearby village, regional authorities said.
Images circulating on Russian social media showed thick black smoke billowing above what users identified as the Slavyansk refinery. The Associated Press was unable to independently verify the footage.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukrainian forces had carried out the strike on the Slavyansk refinery. He also claimed that another refinery in Russia's Yaroslavl region, about 700 kilometres (435 miles) from the Ukrainian border, had been targeted during the overnight attacks.
"Tonight, our 'long-range sanctions' reached two oil refineries in Russia," Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. "Each strike means fewer resources to fuel the Russian war machine and another step towards peace."
Ukraine has significantly expanded its long-range strikes on Russian military industries and energy infrastructure as the war enters its fifth year, aiming to reduce Moscow's revenues and bring the consequences of the conflict closer to the Russian public. Western officials say the campaign has helped slow Russia's battlefield momentum and increase pressure on the Kremlin.
The Slavyansk refinery is one of southern Russia's largest processing facilities, with an annual capacity of nearly 4 million tonnes of crude oil. It is a key supplier of petroleum products, including fuel oil, naphtha and marine fuel, exported through Russia's Black Sea ports.
Russian authorities did not immediately comment on Zelenskyy's claim that the refinery in the Yaroslavl region had also been hit. However, Yaroslavl Governor Mikhail Evraev said several roads linking Moscow with the regional capital had been temporarily closed because of "an enemy attack by Ukrainian drones".
Yaroslavl Airport, along with several airports in southern and western Russia, briefly suspended operations overnight, according to Russia's civil aviation agency.
Elsewhere, Ukrainian drone strikes killed one person and injured another in Russia's border region of Belgorod, acting Governor Alexander Shuvayev said.
Russia's Defence Ministry said its air defences had intercepted and destroyed 213 Ukrainian drones overnight over Russian territory, occupied Crimea and the Black and Azov seas.
Meanwhile, Russia launched 142 long-range attack drones and eight missiles against Ukraine overnight, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. It said Ukrainian air defences shot down 125 drones and seven missiles.