Drones hit Moscow oil refinery as Russia and Ukraine exchange strikes

Ukrainian drones hit Moscow’s oil refinery for the second time this week while Russia fired missiles into Kyiv, as President Volodymyr Zelensky sought support from the US and Europe to reach a peace deal.

Moscow downed over five dozen drones on Thursday, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin ‌said on Telegram, and a Reuters witness saw flames and plumes of smoke over the southeastern district of Kapotnya where the Moscow refinery is located.

“Air defence forces continue to repel a massive attack. Several drones managed to reach the Moscow oil refinery,” Sobyanin said, adding that a shopping centre also suffered minor damage.

The attack is the second in just a few days after a drone strike on Tuesday halted operations at the refinery, sources said, adding to widespread damage to Russian energy facilities and extending a fuel crisis deeper into the country.

Russia, the world’s third-biggest oil producer and a major oil and fuel exporter, is set to import fuel by sea ⁠this month as it seeks to manage a fuel shortage following extensive Ukrainian drone attacks on its refineries, according to industry sources.

In the surrounding Moscow region, a high-rise residential building, an industrial ‌facility and a number of private houses were also damaged in the drone attack, the regional governor said.