Ukrainian Drones Hit St Petersburg Oil Terminal and Nearby Port
Ukraine launched a large-scale overnight drone attack on St Petersburg and the surrounding area, hitting the city's oil terminal and port infrastructure, while Russian officials report no casualties and downed drones.
Ukraine carried out a large-scale drone attack on St Petersburg and its surrounding region overnight, striking the city's oil terminal and port infrastructure in the wider area. St Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov said the city had been subjected to a "large-scale" drone attack that hit its oil terminal. He stated there were no casualties and that the aftermath of the attack had been dealt with.
Alexander Drozdenko, governor of the Leningrad region, said a drone struck the area of Vysotsk port, about 170 km northwest of St Petersburg on the Baltic Sea. The port handles oil, grain, coal and liquefied natural gas. Drozdenko said 72 drones had been shot down over the region, with minor damage in several settlements. He did not provide information on the impact on Vysotsk port.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the attack on Telegram as part of Ukraine's "long-range sanctions" against Russia, noting that strikes hit port oil infrastructure that generates revenue for Russia's war, as well as Kronstadt, an important military target more than 850 km from Ukraine's border. Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed the strikes on energy facilities as "not critical."
There was no Russian confirmation of a strike on Kronstadt, a major naval base near St Petersburg that Ukraine also targeted last month. Ukraine has intensified strikes on Russian energy infrastructure this year, inflicting heavy damage on refineries and causing petrol shortages across Russia.
Elsewhere, the governor of Russia's Bryansk region and the Russian-installed governor of Crimea said drone strikes killed one person in each region, with several more wounded. South of St Petersburg, the governor of Pskov region said more than 30 drones had been shot down overnight, with minor damage and injuries, including at a factory in the town of Velikiye Luki.
Zelenskyy denied Russian claims that the eastern city of Kostiantynivka had been captured, calling it a lie. Ukraine's general staff confirmed the city remains under Ukrainian control. Russia's defense ministry also claimed it had taken five villages in Kharkiv and Donetsk regions.
