Ukraine war latest: 'Fuel tanks are burning' — Major Russian oil hub hit in Ukrainian drone strike in Krasnodar Krai
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Key developments on March 12:
- 'Fuel tanks are burning' — Major Russian oil hub hit in Ukrainian drone strike in Krasnodar Krai, SBU source says
- World’s largest oil producer Aramco in talks to buy Ukrainian interceptor drones, WSJ reports
- Hungary's unrecognized Druzhba delegation arrives in Kyiv amid 'absurd' standoff
- Ukraine, Romania sign strategic partnership declaration, set to co-produce drones
Ukrainian forces struck infrastructure at the Tikhoretsk oil pumping station in Russia's Krasnodar Krai, one of the largest oil logistics hubs in southern Russia, a source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said on March 12.
"Today's strike on the Tikhoretsk oil hub, which is the only supply branch delivering petroleum products to Novorossiysk, delivered a significant blow to the enemy's oil logistics," the source said.
The operation was carried out by SBU's Alfa Special Operations Center and targeted the facility's infrastructure in the town of Tikhoretsk, according to the source. The site forms part of a major oil hub that includes a large oil depot and terminal used to handle Russian fuel and petroleum products.
The strike caused a large fire at the facility, the source said. Videos circulating online appear to show multiple fires at the site, likely involving fuel storage tanks.
Russian authorities confirmed the attack on the oil pumping station and said 26 pieces of equipment were deployed to extinguish the fire.
Ukraine previously targeted oil infrastructure at the Russian port of Novorossiysk earlier in March, in an operation the SBU said was conducted jointly with Ukraine's Defense Forces.
According to the SBU source, such operations are designed to disrupt supply chains, complicate fuel transport to Russian ports, and force Moscow to alter logistics routes, weakening Russia's ability to sustain the war.
World’s largest oil producer Aramco in talks to buy Ukrainian interceptor drones, WSJ reports
Saudi state oil giant Aramco, the world's largest oil producer, is in talks with at least two Ukrainian companies about purchasing interceptor drones to defend oil infrastructure from Iranian drone attacks, The Wall Street Journal reported on March 12.
Aramco has held discussions with Ukrainian manufacturers SkyFall and Wild Hornets, which produce drones that intercept hostile unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) by ramming them or detonating neary, according to WSJ.
Aramco is trying to obtain the systems as quickly as possible, potentially moving faster than its own government and regional competitors such as Qatar, according to the newspaper.
The company accounts for roughly a tenth of global oil supply.
The talks come as countries in the Middle East face growing attacks from Iranian-made Shahed drones following the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran that began on Feb. 28.
Ukraine, which has spent years defending its cities and infrastructure from large-scale Russian attacks using Shahed-type drones, has offered to share its experience in countering cheap long-range UAVs.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on March 10 that Kyiv has sent experts to Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates to advise on defenses against Iranian drone strikes.
Hungary's unrecognized Druzhba delegation arrives in Kyiv amid 'absurd' standoff
A Hungarian expert team tasked with assessing the status of the Druzhba oil pipeline has arrived in Kyiv, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced on March 12.
Budapest dispatched the delegation led by Gabor Czepek, the state secretary of Hungary's Energy Ministry, to verify the pipeline's operability, accusing Kyiv of misrepresenting its condition.
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said the visit had not been coordinated with Kyiv and that the Hungarian team has no official status or scheduled meetings with Ukrainian officials.
Speaking to Czepek in an online call, Orban instructed him to "try to get in touch with the government bodies responsible for energy."
"We must try politely to establish contact with (the Ukrainian side). If that doesn't work, we should request permission to go there ourselves and conduct an on-site inspection," the prime minister told the official.
The Kyiv Independent has reached out to Hungary's Foreign Ministry, Energy Ministry, and the Hungarian Embassy in Kyiv for comment.
The Ukrainian section of the Druzhba pipeline, which had been delivering Russian crude to Hungary and Slovakia, went offline in late January due to a Russian attack in western Ukraine, Kyiv said.
Bratislava and Budapest accused Ukraine of lies and blackmail, pledging to continue blocking the EU's 20th sanctions package against Russia and the 90-billion-euro ($107-billion) EU loan to Kyiv in retaliation.
Ukraine, Romania sign strategic partnership declaration, set to co-produce drones
President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Romanian counterpart, Nicusor Dan, signed a strategic partnership declaration during the former's visit to Bucharest on March 12.
The two leaders also agreed to expand cooperation in the energy and defense sectors, signaling closer ties between the neighboring countries.
According to Dan, the two countries would jointly produce drones, an increasingly vital weapon in the Russia-Ukraine war. Russian attack drones have repeatedly crashed in Romanian territory during attacks on Ukraine.
Ukraine is also constructing two new power supply lines with Romania to strengthen energy security in Ukrainian border regions, Zelensky said.
"The work is starting, and this is something that can support our regions, in particular Chernivtsi Oblast," the Ukrainian president said in a joint press conference with Dan.
"This is something that will allow Romania to become stronger in terms of ensuring energy security in our part of Europe."
The two sides also discussed cooperation in importing American liquefied natural gas (LNG) into Ukraine and in the joint development of Ukrainian gas fields.
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