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Ukrainian drones crippled an oil refinery in Russia’s second-largest city of St. Petersburg in the early morning hours Saturday, as Kyiv continued to intensify its long-range attacks hoping to force dictator Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table.
Drones were seen flying over the city in footage shared on Telegram, and loud explosions rang out around 6:30 a.m. local time.
Dozens of drones were launched over the region, according to Russian officials.
Fire raged, with thick black plumes of smoke rising from the port area, which is home to the St. Petersburg Oil Terminal — one of Russia’s largest fuel storage and export facilities, which reportedly produces roughly 250,000 barrels of petroleum products a day.
“Ukraine’s Defense Forces struck port oil infrastructure that generates revenue for Russia’s war,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Saturday, confirming the targeted strikes on X.
Ukraine also battered the main base of Russia’s Baltic Fleet at Kronstadt, which Zelensky called “an important military target.”
“Russia has lost the Black Sea,” the Ukrainian leader claimed in another post on X Saturday. “The Ukrainian Navy has achieved what many believed was impossible.”
The attacks are part of a the 40-day “pressure campaign” signed off on by Zelensky last month, tapping Ukraine’s military intelligence to unleash long-range drones strikes deep into the heart of Russia to force Putin to halt his more than four-year war.
The Russian strongman is coming under rare public criticism at home, as fuel shortages, rising inflation and military casualties cause an increasing number of people to pin the blame on Putin for his invasion of Ukraine.
“It is a crisis,” Vladimir Milov, the Kremlin’s former deputy minister of energy, who lives in exile, told The Hill.
“What we are seeing right now is an extreme acceleration of public admissions that we are in trouble.”
The war is at a critical point, with Russian advances slowing in recent months, and experts believing that Ukraine may be on the cusp of a turning point.
Ukraine’s strikes came two days after Russian attacks killed at least 31 people and wounded more than 100 in Kyiv — in the third-deadliest assault on the capital since the war began in 2022.
Meanwhile Zelensky said he spoke with President Trump Saturday — as the US marked its 250th anniversary on the 4th of July — and that the two leaders have agreed to talk in person next week during the NATO Summit in Turkey, set to take place July 7-8 in Ankara.
“President Trump and I discussed the current situation on the frontline as well as our diplomatic efforts,” Zelensky shared on social media.
“There is a real prospect to put an end to this war, and America’s resolve is decisive. We have agreed to continue these discussions during the NATO Summit in Ankara.”
English (US)