Drone Strikes Escalate as Energy Infrastructure Comes Under Fire

Russian investigators have opened a criminal case on terrorism charges over a Ukrainian drone attack on an industrial facility in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region, according to state news agency TASS. The regional governor said an unnamed facility suffered “significant damage” in what he described as a “massive” drone attack. Ukrainian media identified the target as the Kstovo oil refinery, which they described as one of Russia’s largest. No casualties were reported, and regional authorities said they were taking measures to maintain fuel supplies at petrol stations. The article places the incident within a wider escalation of strikes on energy and industrial infrastructure. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian attacks overnight damaged power infrastructure in four Ukrainian regions, leaving hundreds of thousands of households without electricity. He said the strikes were intense and that Russia was seeking to take advantage of a shortage of ballistic missile interceptors. Zelenskyy also said Ukraine had struck the Kamensky plant in Russia’s Rostov region, which he said was involved in producing Russian missiles. Both countries reported large numbers of drones intercepted or downed: Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces downed 235 Ukrainian drones overnight, while Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 371 of 433 Russian long-range drones launched since Saturday evening. Moscow said Ukraine had resumed attacks on Russian refineries after a pause of several days; a senior Russian official said three refineries and a gas-chemical complex had been hit. The article notes that Ukraine has repeatedly targeted Russian oil and gas facilities in retaliation for Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure since Russia’s February 2022 offensive. It also reports that US President Donald Trump had urged Kyiv to stop refinery attacks, citing rising diesel prices. Separately, a Kremlin aide said President Vladimir Putin would take a call from Zelenskyy and had not refused talks, while arguing that initial negotiations should involve Russia, Ukraine and the United States, but exclude other European countries.

Russian authorities said a major overnight drone attack struck an industrial facility in the Kstovsky district of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, causing significant damage. Regional governor Gleb Nikitin described it as a “massive UAV attack,” saying more than 100 drones had been destroyed. He reported no casualties in preliminary information and said emergency crews were at the scene. Repairs could cause temporary power cuts and reductions in hot water and heating for some residential areas. Telegram war-monitoring channels said the target was the Kstovo oil refinery, also known as the Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez refinery, which is considered one of Russia’s largest. Lukoil says the site produces diesel and aviation fuel, among other products. Russian authorities’ statement, as reported here, did not confirm that the refinery was the facility hit. The article places the reported attack amid other strikes on Russian energy infrastructure. Earlier in the week, a separate drone attack reportedly caused a major fire at a refinery in Samara region. It also notes reports that Ukraine had paused refinery strikes amid pressure from Washington, which linked the attacks to rising global diesel prices. Ukraine has targeted Russian refineries, terminals and depots in an effort to damage an important source of Russian economic activity and weaken the Kremlin’s war effort. The report also describes recent Russian attacks on Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said about 280,000 Ukrainian households lost power after strikes on Friday night: around 200,000 in Dnipro and the surrounding region, and at least 80,000 in the Kyiv region. He said Russian forces hit a combined heat and power plant in Kyiv and four electrical substations in the eastern Dnipro region, among other targets.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine struck the Kamensky Combine, a Russian defence-industry facility in the Rostov region involved in missile production, as well as two Russian air-defence assets: a Pantsir-S2 system and a command-and-staff vehicle associated with an S-400 Triumf system. He estimated the damaged air-defence equipment was worth about $70 million and praised Ukraine’s Security Service and other Defence Forces units for carrying out the operation. The article notes that the strike claims and reported damage could not be independently verified. Zelenskyy also said Russian attacks had damaged energy infrastructure in four Ukrainian regions—Dnipro, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr and Khmelnytskyi—leaving hundreds of thousands of families without electricity. He said repair crews were working and described attacks on other critical infrastructure as continuing. According to figures he provided, Russia had launched 1,940 attack drones, more than 1,580 guided aerial bombs and 44 missiles, including 36 ballistic missiles, against Ukraine over the previous week. The Ukrainian leader called on international partners to speed up deliveries of air-defence systems and ammunition, especially Patriot missiles. He argued that support must arrive promptly because Russia was damaging infrastructure and using ballistic missiles. The article reports that Kyiv is set to receive 500 PAC-3 interceptors from the United States. Separately, amid efforts to restart negotiations, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said Russian President Vladimir Putin had never refused talks with Zelenskyy and would answer a call from him. Ushakov said Zelenskyy could travel to Moscow if he wanted to negotiate. The report presents these remarks alongside the continuing military attacks and Ukraine’s requests for additional defensive support.