In a strategic escalation of economic warfare, Ukrainian forces carried out a series of drone strikes overnight, igniting fires at critical oil facilities deep inside Russian territory and in occupied Crimea.
Ukraine's General Staff confirmed strikes on two major targets: the Grushovaya oil transshipment base near Novorossiysk in the Krasnodar Krai region, and a linear production and dispatching station in the Volgograd region. Russian officials acknowledged that a Ukrainian drone sparked a fire at the Grushovaya facility, deploying over 130 rescue workers to contain the blaze. No casualties were reported.
On the Crimean peninsula, Ukrainian forces hit the Semykolodezkaya oil depot and another facility near Feodosia, both of which the General Staff stated are used to store fuel reserves for the Russian military. These strikes, officials said, are part of Kyiv's campaign to impose a direct economic cost on Moscow for its full-scale invasion.
Russian authorities confirmed fires at the facilities but did not provide details on the extent of the damage. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov acknowledged fuel supply problems in occupied Crimea, saying, "There are indeed certain problems at the moment. Measures are being taken."
Meanwhile, Russia launched retaliatory strikes on Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region, killing three civilians in the city of Chuguiv and wounding ten others in Kharkiv city. The attacks damaged residential buildings and vehicles, further raising the civilian death toll.
According to a UN estimate, at least 15,850 civilians have been killed in Ukrainian zones since February 2022. The European Union is set to impose a new round of sanctions against Russia, targeting its military-industrial complex, human rights violators, and propagandists, with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas estimating that Western sanctions have already cost Moscow $1.2-1.5 trillion.