Ukraine’s military battered a Russian oil refinery in an overnight drone strike, humiliating Russian President Vladimir Putin as he battles a deepening fuel crisis.
Fire engulfed the Lukoil-owned Volgograd Oil Refinery following the overnight attack, according to eyewitness images and videos reviewed by the independent Russian outlet Astra. Regional Gov. Andrei Bocharov said that four employees in the city’s southern industrial zone were killed and two others were injured.
Fire engulfed the Lukoil-owned Volgograd Oil Refinery, photos circulating on social. media show.
The refinery is among Russia’s 10 largest, with capacity to process around 14 million tons of crude oil a year—roughly 5 percent of the country’s total refining capacity.
The attack came hours after U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff landed in Moscow on Thursday for fresh talks with Putin, as Trump seeks to put an end to the conflict that began nearly five years ago.
It also follows questions from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the Trump administration about crippling disruptions to a military version of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite network that Kyiv’s military uses to intercept drones from Russia.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, center, with U.S. envoys Jared Kushner (L) and businessman Steve Witkoff (R), in Dublin.
PAUL FAITH/AFP via Getty Images
Zelensky has reported “significant disruptions” to Starshield’s operations over the past several days. The disruptions have severely hampered Ukraine’s ability to repel Russian forces and drone attacks.
Speed limits were previously imposedon Starshield terminals in October, amid allegations that Musk personally ordered the restrictions.
Bocharov said falling drone debris caused the blaze.
“As a result of the drone debris falling, localized fires were recorded at a plant in Volgograd’s southern industrial zone, as well as in the adjacent area,” Bocharov said in a Telegram statement.
The attack delivers another blow to Putin as Kyiv ramps up its attacks on Russia’s crucial energy infrastructure, more than four years into the war.
Ukraine’s relentless campaign has strained Russia’s ability to produce enough fuel to meet domestic demand despite the country being one of the world’s biggest oil producers. Wholesale fuel prices have risen, authorities have introduced rationing in some regions, and social-media footage has shown motorists lining up for fuel.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is battling a deepening fuel crisis as Ukraine batters his oil refineries.
Sergei Bulkin/via REUTERS
Oil exports and Russia’s broader energy industry account for roughly 30 percent of government budget revenues and remain critical to financing Moscow’s war effort.
Videos shared by Astra showed drivers lining up to refuel early on Friday morning.
“It’s 2 a.m. What’s going on there, Volgograd? Has it started again?” a resident asked in one video.
The latest attack comes as Ukraine has struck nine of Russia’s 35 major refineries since late October. Industry sources told Reuters that daily crude processing had fallen roughly 30 percent, from approximately 700,000 tons at the end of October to 500,000 by mid-November.
Putin had already threatened retaliation after earlier Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure.
“They battered our people, and they will get a response,” Putin said in September, after announcing that he had instructed Russian forces to prepare large-scale strikes against Ukrainian energy facilities.
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