A sustained Ukrainian drone offensive against Russian oil infrastructure and maritime logistics has precipitated a nationwide fuel crisis, forcing the Kremlin to ban exports of diesel and jet fuel and to begin importing petrol. In Crimea, the Russian-installed governor, Sergey Aksyonov, warned on Wednesday that fuel would be “unavailable for sale” on certain days, extending a sales halt imposed weeks earlier for all but federal and essential services. The shortages, which the Institute for the Study of War reports now affect 78 of Russia’s 83 regions, mark the most visible economic consequence of Kyiv’s campaign to degrade the military supply chains and refining capacity that sustain Russia’s war effort.

Ukraine’s General Staff stated that its forces struck 12 tankers, one tugboat and one cargo ship in the Sea of Azov in a single night, describing the vessels as part of the logistical network used to supply Russian military groups and to transport oil products while bypassing international sanctions. Commander Robert Brovdi of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces characterised the maritime campaign as having reached an “industrial scale,” with 21 vessels hit over 72 hours. Russian authorities confirmed that two oil tankers were damaged and one remained ablaze, while the Defence Ministry said air defences intercepted 73 Ukrainian drones overnight. President Vladimir Putin publicly acknowledged the shortages but described them as “temporary matters,” as the FSB security service claimed to have foiled what it called unprecedented Ukrainian sabotage plots involving Western agents.

The physical toll on Russia’s energy sector is widening. Ukrainian strikes have damaged approximately one-third of the country’s refining capacity, according to Russian government statistics cited by multiple outlets, and gasoline production has fallen by 17 percent. The Omsk refinery in Siberia—Russia’s largest, processing some 460,000 barrels per day last year—halted operations after a drone attack on Monday, industry sources told Reuters. In Moscow, lines of cars have formed outside petrol stations, and social media footage from the Zabaykalsky Krai region showed drivers waiting 36 hours to refuel. Maritime supply routes to occupied Crimea have been severely disrupted: traffic on the R-280 highway, a major artery from Rostov-on-Don, dropped by over 70 percent, according to Ukrainian forces.

Viewed from Washington, the crisis unfolded as President Donald Trump announced at the NATO summit in Ankara that the United States would grant Ukraine a license to manufacture Patriot air-defence interceptors, a policy shift long sought by Kyiv. Trump praised President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “very effective,” and the two leaders discussed a separate drone cooperation agreement that Zelenskyy called “a very good beginning.” Analysts in European capitals note that Ukraine’s ability to strike deep inside Russian territory is reshaping the conflict’s economic dimension even as the ground campaign remains largely stalemated. The Kremlin has responded by sourcing fuel with lower environmental standards, while Ukraine’s military signalled that strikes on logistics will continue. Formal US-Ukraine defence industrial agreements are expected to be finalised in the coming weeks.