At a news conference with Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov on March 19, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also said that the U.S. has not seen evidence of large numbers of foreign fighters joining Russian ranks.
ZN.UA outlet, citing unnamed sources, reported that explosions were caused by the detonation of munitions being transported by train near the village of Kalynivka in Kyiv Oblast, some 30 kilometers (18 miles) south of the capital.
The Kirishi refinery is one of the largest in Russia and has a processing capacity of over 17 million tons of oil per year. A fire broke out at the facility during a Ukrainian drone attack, Leningrad Oblast Governor Alexander Drozdenko claimed.
Ukrainian forces downed 52 out of the 58 drones, including Shahed-type attack drones, launched by Russia overnight, the Air Force reported. Russia also launched an Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missile.
According to the statement, the communications center, responsible for coordinating operations of Russia's Black Sea Fleet units, was located at the site of the 184th Research and Testing Facility.
The number includes 880 casualties that Russian forces suffered over the past day.
Units of Ukraine's 425th Skelya Regiment liberated the village of Filia in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, a military spokesperson said. Russia claimed control of the settlement on Aug. 24.
The Metafrax Chemicals plant in Gubakha, Perm Krai, is subject to international sanctions by the U.K. and Ukraine.
"I think we in the United States are behind ... I think a lot of nations are behind, and I think to the credit of the Ukrainians, they picked up on that, and they're the world leaders in it."
"There's no doubt about the drones were intentionally launched. The question is whether the drones were targeted to go into Poland specifically," U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters.
"Russian military personnel know exactly where their drones are headed and how long they can stay in the air," President Volodymyr Zelensky said, commenting on the attacks. "The routes are always calculated. This cannot be an accident, a mistake, or the initiative of some lower-level commanders."
Explosive devices were discovered during an inspection of the tracks, Oryol Oblast Governor Andrey Klychkov said. One of the devices detonated, killing two officers and seriously injuring another.
There is an agreement in place with the EU to maintain Kyiv's progress despite Budapest's veto, Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration Taras Kachka said.
The proposal, described by one source as "legally creative," would allow Brussels to provide critical financial support to Ukraine without technically seizing the Russian capital—an act that would be fraught with legal risk.
Zelensky remarks come days after Russian drones violated Polish airspace and were shot down in what marked the first known instance of NATO forces directly engaging Russian aerial assets during the full-scale invasion.
Preliminary assessments indicate that key infrastructure at a major oil refinery in Russia’s Bashkortostan region— including a vacuum column essential for primary oil processing—suffered significant damage.
