Ukraine Strikes Russian Oil Infrastructure
KYIV, Ukraine – On Sunday, Ukraine carried out a series of attacks on Russia’s oil export facilities, targeting a significant loading port in the Baltic Sea along with two tankers that were allegedly being used illegally to transport Russian crude oil.
A drone strike at Russia’s largest oil export port sparked a fire, as reported by local governor Alexander Drozdenko. The Primorye port, managed by the state oil company Transneft, has the capability to handle hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil daily. Interestingly, this port has been targeted multiple times since March, situated more than 1,000 kilometers from Ukraine, nestled between the Russian-Finnish border and St. Petersburg.
Drozdenko mentioned that the drone attack did not result in an oil spill, but he did not provide immediate details on casualties or damage. Ukraine has not publicly commented on the strike against Primorye yet.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, however, did announce on the same day that Ukrainian forces had attacked two Russian tankers near the entrance of the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. “These tankers were actively used for oil transport, but now they are out of commission,” he said, adding that the operation was led by Andriy Natov, chief of staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Zelensky described the tankers as part of Russia’s so-called shadow oil fleet, intended to bypass Western sanctions and price caps on Russian energy exports. Moscow has not yet responded to these claims.
In recent weeks, Ukraine has intensified its assaults on Russian oil export facilities, with officials arguing that oil revenues are directly supporting the ongoing invasion, which has now entered its fifth year.
On a different note, Russian drone raids during the night targeted the southern Odesa region of Ukraine. According to Ukraine’s Emergency Services Agency, this attack resulted in two fatalities and three injuries, while damaging three homes.
The drone strike also hit port infrastructure, igniting a fire that was later extinguished by emergency services. Additionally, six individuals sustained injuries from a separate attack in the Dnipropetrovsk region, where a passenger bus, transporting 40 children, was damaged. Fortunately, no one aboard was injured.
In Russia, a 77-year-old man lost his life due to a Ukrainian drone strike west of Moscow, as reported by local governor Andrei Vorobyov. This incident occurred near Volokolamsk, approximately 120 kilometers from central Moscow. Vorobyov also noted that six drones were intercepted in the surrounding Moscow region, with Mayor Sergei Sobyanin stating at least five more were shot down approaching the capital.
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that overnight, a total of 334 Ukrainian-made unmanned aerial vehicles were shot down over Russia and occupied Crimea.
Moreover, Russia launched its own attack on Ukraine using 269 drones and ballistic missiles. The Ukrainian Air Force indicated that Ukrainian forces managed to shoot down or disable 249 drones while also dealing with strikes from ballistic missiles and 19 additional drones across 15 locations.
