Ukrainian forces carried out a coordinated series of overnight strikes on Russian fuel infrastructure and military sites, targeting key logistics points used to supply Moscow’s troops, the AFU General Staff reported Sunday, Sept. 7.
Missile, artillery, and drone units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, working alongside other components of the Defense Forces, struck the Ilsky oil refinery in Krasnodar Krai.
Drone debris hit one of the refinery’s processing units, triggering a fire that was quickly extinguished by emergency teams.
The Ilsky refinery is one of the largest in Russia’s Southern Federal District, processing crude oil and transporting finished products by rail and road.
Ukrainian drones also attacked the Druzhba oil pipeline at the “8-N” linear-production dispatch station in Naitopovychi, Bryansk Oblast. The station is part of a key route transporting petroleum products from Belarus, including from the Mozyr and Novopolotsk refineries, into Russia.
Its annual capacity is about 10.5 million tons of fuel. The strike was carried out jointly by Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces and Missile and Artillery Forces, according to Robert Brovdi, commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces.
Ukraine has repeatedly targeted Russia’s Druzhba oil pipeline, which carries crude to Slovakia and Hungary. The EU banned most Russian oil imports in 2022 but exempted Druzhba to give landlocked Central European states time to diversify
In addition to fuel targets, Ukrainian forces struck Russian military personnel locations and supply depots in the Kursk region. The General Staff said the attacks aim to “degrade the offensive potential of Russian troops” and disrupt fuel and ammunition supplies.
“The Defense Forces continue measures to weaken Russia’s offensive capabilities and compel the Russian Federation to end its armed aggression against Ukraine,” the report said.
The attack came the same night as Russia unleashed its biggest-ever aerial assault on Ukraine, killing four people and igniting a fire at the seat of the Ukrainian government in Kyiv. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strike would only prolong the war.
The attack marked the first time Russia had targeted Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers, a vast government complex in central Kyiv. A Kyiv Post reporter, residing in the city center, saw flames tearing through the roof as thick smoke rose over the capital.
Emergency services said drone strikes also damaged several high-rise buildings across Kyiv.
Moscow, now in the fourth year of its full-scale invasion, has shown no sign of easing its assault. The Kremlin continues to press hardline conditions for ending the war, even as the United States pushes for a negotiated peace.
