Ukraine has taken the fight directly to the source of Russia's war funding, launching a series of high-impact drone strikes against key oil refineries deep within Russian territory. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that the Bashneft-Novoil and Slavneft-Yanos refineries were hit, with the former located a staggering 1,300km from the Ukrainian border.
These strikes are a calculated effort to degrade the energy revenues that Vladimir Putin relies on to fuel his ongoing aggression. In addition to the refinery hits, Ukraine successfully targeted Russian patrol boats and vessels belonging to the 'shadow fleet' used to circumvent international oil sanctions.
While Russian officials attempted to downplay the damage, claiming to have intercepted dozens of drones, verified footage shows massive plumes of smoke rising from the Yaroslavl facility.
This escalation comes as Russia continues its own brutal campaign against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure, with recent strikes leaving the city of Kherson in a total blackout and killing at least 11 people across various regions.
As the front line remains largely static, Ukraine is proving that it can project power far behind enemy lines, forcing Moscow to face the economic consequences of its unprovoked invasion.
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