Russia–Ukraine war: Ukrainian drone strike hits oil depot in Russia’s Volgograd; Moscow steps up attacks

A Ukrainian drone strike triggered a fire at an oil depot in Russia’s southern Volgograd region on Saturday, regional authorities said, as both sides continued to target energy infrastructure amid intensified fighting.

There were no immediate reports of casualties, though residents living near the depot may be evacuated, the regional governor said in a Telegram post carried on the local administration’s channel, as per news agency AP.


The post did not detail the extent of the damage.

Kyiv has previously said its long-range drone strikes on Russian energy facilities are aimed at reducing Moscow’s oil export revenues, which it says help finance Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Russia has continued its own campaign against Ukrainian power and fuel facilities.

The strike came a day after Russia launched a large-scale overnight attack on Ukraine, firing hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles, according to Ukrainian officials.

At least four people were killed in Kyiv, including an emergency medical worker, while dozens were injured.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia also used its nuclear-capable Oreshnik hypersonic missile, which struck western Ukraine, in a clear warning to Kyiv’s Nato allies, reported AP.

Russia’s defence ministry said on Saturday that its forces had used aviation, drones, missiles and artillery to hit Ukrainian energy facilities and fuel-storage depots on Friday and overnight, without specifying locations or damage.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia launched 121 drones and one Iskander-M ballistic missile overnight into Saturday, adding that 94 drones were shot down.