Ukrainian Drones Strike Moscow Refinery as War Escalates

The repeat assault on the refinery, which had already halted operations following a strike on Tuesday, compounds Russia’s deepening fuel crisis. Moscow, typically a leading global oil exporter, now faces the prospect of importing fuel by sea to offset shortages caused by persistent damage to its refining infrastructure. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin confirmed that drones breached defenses to strike the facility, while regional officials reported damage to residential buildings and industrial sites across the Moscow area. At Sheremetyevo airport, officials temporarily suspended flights as the scale of the drone wave triggered widespread emergency protocols.

Simultaneously, the conflict intensified across Ukraine, where ballistic missiles targeted Kyiv and air raid alerts covered most of the country. In Sumy, one individual died during a drone attack, while a separate strike in Enerhodar—home to many workers from the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant—resulted in another fatality. These developments coincide with diplomatic efforts by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who held coordinating talks with U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron during a G7 meeting in France. While Trump noted that both leaders appeared open to negotiations, the Kremlin maintained that no direct meeting between Putin and Zelenskiy had been discussed, as both sides continue to trade accusations over civilian casualties and battlefield losses.