Moscow oil refinery burns after Ukrainian drone strike: Details emerge
File photo: The Moscow oil refinery is on fire following an attack by Ukrainian drones (Getty Images)
Last night, Ukrainian drones struck the Moscow oil refinery; a fire broke out following the strike, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Robert Brovdi, call-sign Magyar.
According to preliminary reports, the ELOU AVT-6 crude oil processing unit was damaged, and a fire broke out.
The General Staff emphasizes that the Moscow oil refinery plays a key role in supplying the Russian military. Its output accounts for over 38% of the region’s fuel consumption; in particular, the plant supplies jet fuel to Domodedovo, Vnukovo, Sheremetyevo, and Zhukovsky airports.
The Moscow oil refinery has a refining capacity of over 12 million tons of oil per year.
Strikes on other Russian targets
Russian command and observation posts in the areas of Bahatyr, Velyka Novosilka, and Siversk in the Donetsk region were also struck. Drones also struck a Russian field artillery depot near Kremenivka in the Donetsk region, logistics depots in Donetsk, and a drone depot in Mariupol in the Donetsk region.
In addition, the Ukrainian Defense Forces struck Russian troop concentrations in the Ivanovskoye area of the Bryansk region of Russia.
A strike on the Russian defense industry enterprise, JSC Central Design Bureau of Instrument Engineering, near the city of Tula, has been confirmed. The facility specializes in the development and production of radar systems and radio navigation equipment. The building and the supporting structure of the assembly shop were damaged.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine also notes that a fire is still burning on the territory of the federal state-owned enterprise Kombinat Temp in Rybinsk, Yaroslavl region, Russia, which was struck on June 14.
"The Ukrainian Armed Forces will continue systematic measures to compel Russia to cease its armed aggression against Ukraine," the statement reads.
President of Ukraine's reaction
The head of state emphasizes that overnight, the Moscow region felt the full force of Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities. He notes that the oil refinery was struck from a distance of 500 kilometers.
"Russia must be forced to end its war against our people. And Ukraine’s long-range weapons are one of the important components of such pressure. This is a just response to Russian strikes – and to the dragging out of a war that must be ended," Zelenskyy states.
Magyar reports that the Moscow oil refinery was struck by operators of the 1st Operational Command of the Unmanned Systems Forces, in coordination with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine (HUR), and other units of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
"Lavra will stand for centuries! Moscow will fall! The economy of retribution for Ukraine’s absolute moral superiority over the barbarians. Flames of fuel instead of flames of anger, a pragmatic punishment, without emotion or unnecessary words," his statement reads.
On the night of June 6, Ukrainian soldiers struck two of the largest oil depots in the temporarily occupied Crimea, the oil transshipment complex in Feodosia and the Semikolodezanskaya depot, which was used to supply fuel to the Russians.
In a number of regions of Russia, including Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Tatarstan, major gas station chains have imposed strict restrictions on the sale of gasoline and diesel.
