A large-scale attack by Ukrainian drones on Russia's Ryazan region caused a fire at a local oil refinery, Reuters reported. Governor Pavel Malkov said on Telegram that the extent of the damage was being assessed, and emergency services were working on the scene. According to him, a warehouse in another location was also damaged in the attacks, without providing further details, News.bg reports.
Earlier, Malkov announced that classes in schools and kindergartens in two regions had been canceled due to the massive drone attacks.
The Ryazan refinery is owned by Rosneft and supplies Moscow with fuel. In recent months, the facility has been attacked by drones several times. It accounts for nearly 5% of Russia's total oil processing.
This is the first Ukrainian attack on a Russian energy facility since US President Donald Trump announced that Moscow and Kiev had agreed to an "energy truce". However, neither Russia nor Ukraine have officially confirmed the agreement. Shortly after Trump's statement, Russian forces again attacked Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
Earlier today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that his country was resuming attacks on Russian oil infrastructure. In recent weeks, Trump has been demanding that Kiev stop these attacks, arguing that they are raising global diesel prices.
The pressure from the US president came after the sharp rise in the price of diesel in the US — a problem for his administration ahead of the midterm elections on November 3. In an attempt to control prices, Trump has agreed with Russia to supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel fuel to the US and world markets. The decision has sparked discontent in Ukraine and Europe.