Ukrainian drone strikes ignited fires at two oil refineries inside Russia on Sunday, killing at least one person in the southern Krasnodar region and prompting temporary road and airport closures near Yaroslavl, some 700 kilometres from the border. President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the attacks, calling them part of a campaign of ‘long-range sanctions’ intended to reduce the resources fuelling Moscow’s war effort. The Slavyansk refinery, a major export hub on the Black Sea, and a second facility in Yaroslavl were struck overnight, according to both Russian regional governors and Zelensky’s Telegram statement.

Kyiv’s leadership describes the strikes as legitimate retaliation for Russia’s near-daily missile and drone barrages on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure since the February 2022 full-scale invasion. ‘Each strike means a reduction in the resources that fuel the Russian war machine, and another step toward peace,’ Zelensky wrote. Moscow, however, condemned the attacks as terrorism. President Vladimir Putin, addressing a congress of the ruling United Russia party, acknowledged that Russia was in a ‘difficult period’ but insisted the state would ‘undoubtedly overcome all the challenges facing us today, including terrorist attacks on our territory and infrastructure facilities.’

Western security analysts note that Ukraine’s increasingly long-range drone campaign is methodically degrading Russian fuel supplies and military logistics. The Slavyansk refinery processes nearly 4 million tonnes of crude annually and is a key source of petroleum products for export. Russian-annexed Crimea declared an emergency situation on Friday, citing fuel shortages and power cuts caused by repeated Ukrainian strikes on logistics chains. Despite Moscow’s claims of intercepting 213 drones overnight, the attacks are forcing the Kremlin to divert air-defence resources and, according to Russian officials and industry reports, have led to fuel purchase limits in some regions.

The raids accelerate a strategy Kyiv says is aimed at pressuring Moscow to negotiate an end to the war, now in its fifth year. Russia continues its own nightly barrages: Ukraine’s air force reported that Moscow launched 142 drones and eight missiles overnight, of which 125 and seven were intercepted. Putin’s public acknowledgment of the strain, while vowing to protect borders and hold planned parliamentary elections in September, signals that the Kremlin views the drone threat as a persistent security challenge. Zelensky has promised further strikes on strategic targets, and with both sides showing no sign of de-escalation, the conflict appears set for intensified long-range cross-border attacks.