Drone attacks on Russian soil continued into their second day, with reported strikes on two oil refineries roughly 50 miles from Russia’s highly important Black Sea oil export terminals, local authorities said.
One of the attacks caused a fire at the Afipsky oil refinery, which was put out, and the other attack caused no damage, local officials said.
The Afipsky refinery is about 50 miles east of Novorossisk, a Black Sea port that is home to a key Russian oil export terminal. The other drone attack hit the Ilsky refinery, Russia state media outlets reported, which is some 40 miles east of Novorossisk.
The drone strikes come just a day after a highly rare attack on Moscow which also used drones and damaged some residential buildings, causing two injuries but no deaths, according to Moscow officials.
Russia’s government blames Kyiv for that attack, while a Ukrainian presidential advisor denied his government’s involvement but expressed joy at seeing such an occurrence.
Meanwhile, several people have been killed in shelling in the central and eastern Ukrainian regions of Dnipropetrovsk and Russian-occupied Luhansk, according to local officials.
Russia says it reserves the right to take ‘severe measures’ after Moscow drone attack
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said it has the right to implement the most “severe measures” after Tuesday morning’s drone attack on Moscow, which it blames on Kyiv.
“Assurances by NATO officials that the Kyiv regime will not launch strikes deep into Russian territory prove to be completely hypocritical,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Russia reserves the right to take the harshest possible measures in response to the terrorist attacks by the Kyiv regime,” it added.
A Ukrainian presidential advisor denied the government’s involvement in the strikes, but said that “we are pleased to watch and predict an increase in the number of attacks.” The drone strikes caused “minor damage” and two injuries but no deaths, Moscow authorities said.
Children die in new missile attack on Kyiv
Two children and an adult died, and more than a dozen people were injured, in a new night-time missile attack on Kyiv, the BBC reported.
Russia has been subjecting the Ukrainian capital to regular aerial attacks with missiles and drones.
The latest attacks occurred in the eastern Desnyanskyi and Dniprovskyi districts.
Ukrainian officials said details of the dead and injured were based on preliminary information.
One of the children killed was between 5 and 6 years old, while the other was 12 or 13, the Kyiv city military administration wrote on Telegram. Both were in Desnyanskyi district.
The attack was the fourth this week, and comes after 17 attacks were launched on the Ukrainian capital throughout May. Most took place at night, although at least one occurred during the day.
In a number of early morning posts on Telegram, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said a “series of explosions” had taken place in the city, and that rescuers had been dealing with fallen debris and fires.
He said 14 people had been injured – nine of whom were taken to hospital.
Meanwhile, Russian-backed officials in the occupied part of Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region said five people had been killed and 19 injured by Ukrainian shelling at a poultry farm on Wednesday.
In recent weeks, Russia – which launched its full-scale invasion on Ukraine in February 2022 – has been using kamikaze drones as well as a range of cruise and ballistic missiles to attack targets in Ukraine.
Kyiv has been heavily targeted, and analysts believe Moscow is trying to deplete and damage Ukraine’s air defenses ahead of a long-expected counter-offensive, which the Ukrainian government has been planning for months.
Putin shows ‘zero inclination’ to end war in Ukraine, White House says
The White House said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has shown “zero inclination” to end the war in Ukraine as the conflict approaches its 500th day.
“The Russians have shown no inclination of being interested at all in a negotiated settlement,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said during a White House briefing.
“I think this week, as you have all seen, Russia has continued to wage a brutal, completely unprovoked war against Ukraine,” Kirby said, referencing a slew of Russian air strikes across Ukraine.
He added that so far this month, Russia has launched 17 air assaults on Kyiv.
Russia says it will target Western weapons supply routes in Ukraine
Russia will target and strike any Western weapons supply routes it detects ahead of Ukraine’s anticipated counteroffensive, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was quoted as saying by state media outlet TASS.
Shoigu noted that Ukraine’s Western allies are boosting arms deliveries to Kyiv prior to what he described as an upcoming “large-scale” Ukrainian offensive.
The defense chief said Moscow was imposing “effective fire damage on the enemy” and that Ukraine’s Western-supplied arms would not change the result of his country’s “special military operation,” which is the term the Kremlin uses for its full-scale war in Ukraine that began in February 2022.
Biden administration approves new security assistance package worth $300 million for Ukraine
The Pentagon announced a new security assistance package for Ukraine worth $300 million. The latest package is the 39th tranche of weapons and contains artillery and anti-armor defenses as well as ammunition.
The US has provided approximately $38 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s invasion in February 2022.
Germany closing Russian consulates
Germany will close four out of its five Russian consulates, the German government said Wednesday, in response to a move from Moscow to limit the number of German diplomats in the country.
Russia will still be allowed to operate its embassy in Berlin and one general consulate, according to Reuters. Germany, meanwhile, will only be allowed to have 350 officials in Russia.
The move comes amid deteriorating ties between the two countries amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Germany’s foreign ministry specifically cited Russia’s new limits on staff when it announced the consulate decision.
“This unjustified decision is forcing the federal government to make very significant cuts in all areas of its presence in Russia,” a spokesperson said, according to Reuters.
Compiled by Ana Dumbadze
