Ukraine war latest: Russia launches mass attack on Odesa Oblast as Ukraine strikes airfield, drone launch site in Russia

Key developments on Nov. 14-15

• Ukraine strikes Russian military airfield in Astrakhan Oblast, drone launch site in Oryol Oblast, General Staff says
• Russia launches 'mass attack' on Odesa Oblast as strikes kill 4, injure 69 across Ukraine over past day
• US floats NATO membership for Ukraine in exchange for Donbas withdrawal, Zelensky says
• Starshield restrictions hamper Ukraine's ability to defend energy infrastructure from Russian drones, Zelensky says
• Ukraine strikes major Russian petrochemical and oil refining plants, helicopter manufacturer, military confirms

Ukrainian forces struck a military airfield in Russia's Astrakhan Oblast and a site used to store, prepare, and launch drones in Oryol Oblast on Nov. 15, Ukraine's General Staff said.

In Astrakhan Oblast, drones targeted the Akhtubinsk airfield, which hosts Russia's 929th State Flight Test Center, one of the country's main facilities for testing new military aircraft and weapons, the General Staff said.

Russia uses the airfield to station Su-34 fighter-bombers, which carry out attacks on Ukrainian cities and military positions using glide bombs.

A powerful secondary explosion was recorded at an ammunition depot storing components for guided aerial missiles following the strike, according to the General Staff.

Earlier on Nov. 15, the Telegram channel Exilenova Plus said that after the detonation, at least 30 explosions were heard on site.

Ukrainian forces also hit a mobile PRV-13 radar altimeter, a system used to measure aircraft altitude and determine their coordinates.

The airbase lies around 650 kilometers (400 miles) east of the Ukrainian-controlled territory, some 30 kilometers (less than 20 miles) west of Russia's border with Kazakhstan.

Astrakhan Oblast Governor Igor Babushkin said that 31 drones were destroyed in the northern part of the region overnight.

The second target was a drone storage, preparation, and launch site known as the Tsymbulova drone port, near the settlement of Tsimbulova in Russia's Oryol Oblast.

Russian forces use the site to launch attack drones against Ukrainian cities, civilian and energy infrastructure, the General Staff said.

Russian forces attacked energy infrastructure in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Odesa, Zhytomyr, and Kirovohrad oblasts overnight and on the morning of Nov. 15 alone, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Zelensky said Russia had launched more than 2,300 attack drones, 1,590 glide bombs, and 15 missiles of various types against Ukraine over the past week.

Only over the past day, at least four civilians were killed, while 69 others were injured in Russian attacks across Ukraine.

Russian Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jet was damaged at Akhtubinsk airfield on Oct. 29, Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) confirmed.

On Aug. 20, a Ukrainian drone strike damaged a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber stationed in Akhtubinsk, according to Ukraine's General Staff.

In separate attacks, Ukrainian forces struck three Russian military-industrial facilities overnight on Nov. 15, including two major petrochemical and oil refining plants in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan and a helicopter manufacturer in Bryansk Oblast.

Russia launches 'mass attack' on Odesa Oblast as strikes kill 4, injure 69 across Ukraine over past day

Russian attacks killed four people and injured 69 others across Ukraine over the past day while Odesa Oblast came under "mass attack," Ukrainian authorities said on Nov. 15.

Russia continued its daily attacks on Ukrainian civilian and critical infrastructure, launching a "mass attack" on Odesa Oblast, Governor Oleh Kiper said.

One of the strikes hit an energy facility belonging to the Ukrainian energy company DTEK. Approximately 41,000 families across Odesa Oblast were temporarily without power while utility workers worked to restore service, Kiper said. Russia attacks Ukraine's energy grid as part of its campaign on critical infrastructure ahead of winter.

Six people were injured in the attacks on Odesa Oblast, while an administrative building was significantly damaged, along with cars, a gas pipeline, residential buildings, and a school.

Overall, Russian forces launched 132 long-range attack drones at Ukraine overnight on Nov. 15, including 78 jet-powered drones, the Air Force said. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted 106 drones, including 61 jet-powered ones. Drone impacts were recorded at 20 locations, according to the Air Force.

In Chernihiv Oblast, two men aged 42 and 45 were killed in a Russian strike on critical infrastructure in the city of Mena, Governor Viacheslav Chaus said. Another 33-year-old man was injured in the attack, Chaus added.

In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Russia attacked with drones, a missile, and artillery four districts of the region, killing one person and injuring 13 others, including a seven-year-old boy, Governor Oleksandr Hanzha reported on Nov. 14.

In Kharkiv Oblast, Russian forces attacked the regional capital of Kharkiv and 13 other settlements, injuring five people, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said. The National Police said that a 67-year-old man was killed in a Russian attack on the village of Borova.

In Zaporizhzhia Oblast, 32 people, including four children, were injured in Russian attacks over the past day, the local authorities said. Over the past day, Russian troops carried out 877 attacks on 48 settlements in the region.

In Sumy Oblast, Russian forces carried out nearly 60 attacks on 28 settlements, injuring five people, the regional military administration said.

In Donetsk Oblast, Russian attacks injured four people, Governor Vadym Filashkin said.

In Kirovohrad Oblast, a Russian drone hit a house, injuring three people, according to Governor Andrii Raikovych. Overnight, Russia attacked an industrial infrastructure facility in the region, the State Emergency Service said.

In Zhytomyr Oblast, energy infrastructure came under attack while civilians were not injured in the attacks, Governor Vitalii Bunecho said.

US floats NATO membership for Ukraine in exchange for Donbas withdrawal, Zelensky says

Zelensky said on Nov. 13 that Ukrainians would have the final say on any potential deal involving Donbas, provided the U.S. and other NATO allies agree to a security package that includes guarantees from NATO and the EU.

According to Zelensky, a new American proposal under discussion would see Ukraine granted NATO membership in exchange for withdrawing from the territories it still controls in the country's east.

“The Americans raised the question: ‘What if Ukraine joins NATO? Would Ukraine withdraw from Donbas?’ This was the first time this issue had been raised,” Zelensky told journalists.

Donbas refers to Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, a strategically vital region in the east that Russian forces have been unable to capture since 2014.

According to Zelensky, Ukraine is discussing with its partners a comprehensive security package that could be offered to Kyiv in the negotiations.

The package would include specific security guarantees from NATO and the EU, a strong Ukrainian army with an adequate number of troops, weapons and financial support for a set period of time, and a so-called Prosperity Plan, or Recovery Plan, backed by funding from clearly identified sources.

“If the American side confirms precisely this to us, together with other NATO partners, then I will ask our Ukrainian society what it thinks: do we accept it or not? I have no right to make that decision on my own,” Zelensky said.

If such a proposal is made, Zelensky said he would hold an “open dialogue” with the public, adding that any deal would come “without any recognition of the occupied territories as Russian.”

“But we need specifics, and we don’t have them yet. All of this is still under discussion,” he added.

Zelensky said he had asked for security guarantees modeled on Article 5 of NATO’s founding treaty “as an absolute minimum.” Washington is now saying it could be something similar to Articles 4 and 5, he added.

When Zelensky asked whether American soldiers would be deployed on Ukrainian soil under such guarantees, the U.S. side answered “No,” he said.

According to Zelensky, U.S. officials described the proposal as bilateral security guarantees similar to those Israel has.

Zelensky’s remarks come amid renewed efforts to end Russia’s full-scale war, including U.S.-mediated talks between Ukrainian and Russian representatives in Abu Dhabi on Nov. 10-11.

The talks followed some of the most contentious weeks in Ukraine’s relationship with Washington, as U.S. President Donald Trump made a deal to buy Russian diesel, waived sanctions on Moscow and pressured Kyiv to stop attacking Russian oil refineries.

Ukraine has since faced disruptions to its Starshield service and military aid deliveries amid the fallout of Trump’s latest pivot toward Russia.

Starshield restrictions hamper Ukraine's ability to defend energy infrastructure from Russian drones, Zelensky says

Restrictions on the speed of Starshield, the militarized version of Starlink, are preventing Ukrainian interceptor drones from taking down Russian jet-powered Shahed drones, Zelensky said on Nov. 15.

Zelensky linked the restrictions to successful Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

"Russian forces are targeting substations with Shahed drones. And many of these strikes get through precisely because speed restrictions remain in place for Starshield terminals along the front line and in temporarily occupied territories," Zelensky said on Telegram.

The new restrictions limit Starshield's operating speed to 161 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour), limiting Ukraine's ability to shoot down Russian strike drones, which are usually intercepted over occupied territory before they reach government-controlled areas.

Zelensky said Russia had launched more than 2,300 attack drones, 1,590 glide bombs, and 15 missiles of various types against Ukraine over the past week.

Russian forces attacked energy infrastructure in Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Odesa, Zhytomyr, and Kirovohrad oblasts overnight and on the morning of Nov. 15 alone. Railway infrastructure in Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts was also targeted.

Only over the past day, at least four civilians were killed, while 69 others were injured in Russian attacks across Ukraine.

Zelensky said he had instructed the Foreign Ministry, Defense Ministry, and his office to work closely with U.S. officials and SpaceX to resolve the issue, stressing that lifting the restrictions was essential to protecting the lives of Ukrainians and energy infrastructure ahead of winter.

Since the end of summer, Russia has renewed its mass attacks on Ukraine's energy facilities in the lead-up to winter.

Ukraine widely uses both commercial Starlink terminals and their militarized version, Starshield. This year's middle-range strike campaign using Starshield has allowed Ukraine to strangle Russian logistics, hampering Russia's ability to advance on the front lines.

On Nov. 13, Zelensky said that speed restrictions on Starshield over Russian-occupied territories are "very dangerous" as they carry political implications for Ukraine's sovereignty.

"If you impose restrictions there, you are already partially recognizing the temporarily occupied territories as not ours," Zelensky told journalists.

In the U.S., the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, a bipartisan support group for Ukraine, demanded a full explanation from the Trump administration and SpaceX and called for the immediate restoration of full Starshield access for Ukraine.

Ukraine strikes major Russian petrochemical and oil refining plants, helicopter manufacturer, military confirms

Ukrainian forces struck three Russian military-industrial facilities overnight on Nov. 15, including two major petrochemical and oil refining plants in Russia's Republic of Tatarstan and a helicopter manufacturer in Bryansk Oblast, Ukraine's General Staff said.

The strikes are part of Ukraine's broader campaign targeting Russian military-industrial facilities and infrastructure supporting Moscow's war effort.

"Every day these plants are idle means fewer tires for the vehicles transporting ammunition to the front, fewer rubber parts for armored vehicles and aircraft, fewer raw materials for the missile industry, and less fuel for the Russian military," the General Staff said.

Explosions and a fire were reported at Nizhnekamskneftekhim, which is part of the Russian petrochemical holding Sibur, the General Staff said. It is located approximately 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) from Ukraine.

The complex produces synthetic rubber, plastics, and other petrochemical products used in various industries, including the production of military vehicle tires, aircraft components, and other military equipment.

Ukrainian monitoring Telegram channel Exilenova+ previously on Nov. 15 reported that residents had witnessed an attack on one of the city's industrial facilities, likely the Nizhnekamskneftekhim petrochemical complex.

Ukrainian forces also struck the TAIF-NK refinery in Nizhnekamsk, hitting its sole primary oil-processing unit, known as ELOU-AVT-7. A fire was reported at the site.

The facility supplies petroleum products and raw materials that can support Russia's fuel and military-industrial needs. It is located more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from Ukraine's border.

The extent of the damage at both facilities is being assessed, according to the General Staff.

Nizhnekamsk Mayor Radmir Belyaev said the city came under a prolonged drone attack on Nov. 15, damaging industrial facilities and an apartment building. Residents were evacuated, and several people were injured, he said.

The third target was the Monolit company in Trubchevsk, in Russia's Bryansk Oblast. The enterprise manufactures aircraft, including helicopters, as well as spare parts and components, and carries out metalworking.

The industrial facilities in Nizhnekamsk have been targeted in previous Ukrainian long-range attacks.

On Sept. 13, Ukraine's General Staff confirmed strikes against the TANECO refinery in Nizhnekamsk and the Slavyansky refinery in Krasnodar Krai.

Ukraine also struck the TANECO refinery on Aug. 20, according to the General Staff.