Ukrainian drone blitz hits 3 Russian oil refineries, Zelensky confirms

Ukrainian long-range drones targeted three oil refineries across Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sept. 7.

"Our soldiers continue to respond fairly to Russian strikes on Ukraine. An oil refinery was hit in the Ryazan region. Our long-range force was used against oil refineries in the Perm region and Tatarstan," Zelensky said in a post on social media.

Ukrainian drones also struck a launch and storage site for strike drones in Russia's Kursk Oblast and "a target" in the Black Sea, he added without providing further details.

Zelensky's statement came as Telegram reports, some of which included geolocated details, said that Ukrainian drones struck the LUKOIL-Permnefteorgsintez refinery, one of Russia's largest oil refineries in Perm, located more than 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) from Ukraine.

Videos shared by the Ukrainian Telegram channel Exilenova+ purportedly show Ukrainian long-range drones flying over Perm and smoke rising from the oil refinery amid explosions.

Independent Russian outlet Astra had earlier said on Sept. 6 that Ryazan Oil Refinery Plant, part of Russia's state-controlled oil giant Rosneft, was struck again, following attacks in May and July. With a capacity to process about 17 million tons of oil per year, it produces a wide range of oil products, including automobile gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation kerosene, fuel oil, and liquefied gases. The facility is located about 500 kilometers (310 miles) from Ukraine.

Elsewhere in Russia, NASA's FIRMS detected a thermal anomaly at the Taganrog-Central military airfield in Taganrog, near Rostov-on-Don in Rostov Oblast, Militarnyi reported. FIRMS uses satellite instruments to detect thermal anomalies and active fires on Earth's surface. Exilenova+ reported that local residents had reported an attack on Taganrog earlier on Sept. 7.

The Kyiv Independent cannot verify the claims or the extent of the damage caused. Ukraine's military has not yet commented on the reported attacks.

Without acknowledging any of the reported attacks, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Sept. 7 that it downed or intercepted 306 Ukrainian drones overnight, including over Perm Krai, Rostov Oblast, and Kursk Oblast. It didn't mention Ryazan Oblast in its report.

The new reported strikesagainst Perm's oil refinery are the latest in a series of attacks that temporarily suspended operations at the site in August. The facility processes more than 13 million metric tons of crude oil annually and produces gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, and lubricating oils.

Ukrainian forces had previously struck the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez oil refinery on July 29 as part of Ukraine's broader missile and drone campaign against Russian energy and oil infrastructure far from Ukraine.

On Sept. 5, a pro-Ukraine partisan force, Atesh, announced that it had recruited a defector from the Russian military who then destroyed a communications tower near Perm, hindering coordination between security forces in the area. The sabotage reportedly cleared the way for Ukrainian drones to again strike the refinery on Aug. 21.

In Taganrog, Ukrainian forces previously struck a Russian defense industry facility on April 19. The targeted site was the Atlant-Aero plant, which develops and manufactures strike and reconnaissance drones for the Russian military. A fire broke out at the facility following the strike.