Ukraine says it hit Russian refineries and Black Sea vessels as war widens

Ukraine said it struck two oil refineries deep inside Russian territory and also hit patrol boats and other vessels in the Black Sea. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Bashneft-Novoil and Slavneft-Yanos refineries were targeted in attacks aimed at limiting oil revenues Moscow uses to finance its war. The strikes were reported on Thursday and were described by Ukrainian officials as part of a broader campaign against energy and transport infrastructure.

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Yaroslavl regional governor Mikhail Evraev said Slavneft-Yanos was on fire after what he called the largest enemy drone attack on the region during the war. He said 93 drones were shot down over the Yaroslavl region overnight and that falling debris hit the refinery's storage tanks. Evraev said four people were injured, while emergency services were working to extinguish the fire.

Zelensky said the Bashneft-Novoil refinery in Bashkortostan was about 1,300km from the Ukrainian border, while Slavneft-Yanos was almost 700km away. Ukraine also said two military patrol boats and shadow fleet vessels were hit in the Black Sea. Zelensky used the term to refer to tankers used by Russia to export sanctioned oil, and said the strikes were intended to strengthen chances for diplomacy.

The reported attacks come as both sides have intensified long-range strikes in recent weeks, with energy facilities, warehouses and transport links increasingly targeted far from the front line. Russia has said it targeted fuel, energy and transport facilities in its own overnight operations. The strikes matter because they reach deep into Russian territory and target infrastructure linked to fuel supplies and state revenue.

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Refineries are strategically important in wartime because they support domestic energy needs and can also affect export capacity. The Black Sea attacks are also significant because maritime routes remain exposed, despite repeated efforts to keep trade moving and to limit the impact on shipping. The Yaroslavl refinery has been targeted more than once during the conflict, underlining the vulnerability of energy infrastructure beyond the immediate combat zone.

The latest reported damage also comes amid a wider pattern of drone warfare, with regional authorities in Russia regularly reporting interceptions and debris damage. On the Ukrainian side, officials said Russian attacks killed at least 11 people and caused a total blackout in the southern city of Kherson, showing the continuing scale of reciprocal strikes. What remains unclear is the full extent of damage at the two refineries and the Black Sea vessels, and whether there were any further casualties beyond those already reported in Yaroslavl.

Authorities in Bashkortostan had not publicly commented on the reported attack on Bashneft-Novoil at the time of reporting. Further assessments from regional officials and military authorities are expected as fire crews, emergency services and investigators continue their work.

Ukraine said it struck two oil refineries in Russia overnight, while Russia said it hit a train station in northeastern Ukraine and a commercial vessel in the Black Sea. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the refinery targets were in the Bashkortostan and Yaroslavl regions, describing the attacks as part of a campaign that he said was strengthening the prospects for diplomacy. He also posted video showing black smoke rising above an oil facility.

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Russia's defence ministry said it had downed 605 Ukrainian drones during the night, while the governor of Yaroslavl said 92 drones were intercepted in what he called the most massive attack on the region during the war. In the Tver region, a drone hit a logistics centre belonging to Wildberries, the Russian e-commerce company that has been repeatedly targeted in recent weeks. The same overnight exchange also saw Russian missile attacks on Kyiv a day earlier, which Ukrainian officials said killed at least 17 people and destroyed warehouses used by several retailers.

On the Ukrainian side, officials said Russian strikes killed two people at Lozova train station in the Kharkiv region and hit a commercial vessel carrying Ukrainian wheat in the Black Sea, killing one person. The Odesa region governor said the ship was struck by Russia, adding to concerns over the safety of maritime trade routes. The latest attacks come as both countries continue to intensify long-range strikes, with civilian deaths rising and air defences under pressure.

The exchange matters because it shows how the war is increasingly being fought far from the front line, with energy infrastructure, transport links and export routes all under threat. Refineries are important strategic targets because they support fuel supplies and broader industrial capacity, while attacks on rail stations and shipping affect civilian movement and trade. The pattern also underlines the strain on Ukraine's air defences and Russia's efforts to disrupt logistics inside Ukraine.

The long-range campaign has expanded in recent months, with Kyiv firing record numbers of drones at Russian territory and Moscow responding with what Ukrainian officials describe as all-time high missile attacks. The strikes on Bashkortostan and Yaroslavl indicate that Ukrainian drones are reaching deep into Russia, including areas hundreds of kilometres from the border. At the same time, the hit on a commercial ship in the Black Sea shows that maritime routes remain exposed despite repeated efforts to keep exports moving.

What remains unclear is the full scale of damage at the refineries, the logistics centre and the ship, as well as whether there were any further casualties beyond those already reported. Officials on both sides are still assessing the overnight attacks, and casualty figures may change as rescue and inspection work continues. The next developments to watch are any further claims about intercepted drones, damage assessments from regional authorities and whether the latest strikes prompt another round of retaliation.

Russian overnight strikes have killed at least six people in Ukraine, with deaths reported in the eastern Kharkiv region and the northern Sumy region. Local officials said three people were killed in Balakliia after strikes hit homes, while three more died in Sumy in separate attacks. The same wave of attacks also damaged a foreign-flagged wheat ship in Ukraine's Black Sea area, killing a crew member and setting off a fire.

Ukrainian authorities said rescuers were working in Balakliia to clear debris and put out fires after the strike on residential buildings. The head of the military administration in the city, Vitalii Karabanov, said the dead were two women and a man. In Sumy, officials said at least 19 people were wounded overnight, including 12 injured in the city itself after an attack with guided aerial bombs.

Separate attacks also wounded two people in the Dnipropetrovsk region and six people in a drone strike on a van in Kherson region. The maritime strike added to the scale of the overnight assault. Oleh Kiper, the governor of Odesa region, said a Russian attack damaged a foreign-flagged ship loaded with wheat and killed one crew member.

Ukraine's seaport administration identified the vessel as Mera Queen, flying the flag of Guinea-Bissau, and said it was hit late on Wednesday. The incident caused a fire and comes amid repeated attacks on Black Sea ports and shipping routes. The strikes matter because they show the continued spread of the war across both civilian areas and export infrastructure.

Balakliia and Sumy have both been hit repeatedly during the conflict, and the latest casualties add to the pressure on Ukraine's emergency services and air defences. The attack on a wheat carrier also highlights the vulnerability of maritime trade in the Black Sea, where Ukraine has been trying to keep export routes open despite persistent threats. The overnight violence came as Russia said it had intercepted 605 Ukrainian drones over its territory and the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

Ukrainian officials did not immediately provide a full nationwide damage assessment, but the reports from several regions point to a broad attack pattern. The separate claims from both sides underline how the war continues to be fought through long-range strikes, air defence activity and attacks on logistics and infrastructure. The Black Sea shipping route has been a recurring point of tension since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with ports and vessels repeatedly exposed to missile and drone attacks.

Ukraine has said for more than a month that Russia has been stepping up efforts to disrupt trade and export routes. The latest strike on a wheat ship suggests that commercial shipping remains at risk even when vessels are operating under foreign flags. The immediate toll is still being assessed, and officials may yet revise casualty figures as rescue work continues.

It is also unclear whether the attack on the ship was part of a wider strike on port infrastructure or a separate hit on a vessel in transit. Further details are expected from regional authorities as they complete damage checks and identify the full extent of the overnight attacks.

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