A drone strike hit a major oil refinery on the outskirts of Moscow on Tuesday, sparking a fire and causing damage, according to Russian security authorities.
Ukraine government said it carried out the attack, describing it as retaliation for Russia’s recent large-scale bombardment of Ukrainian cities.
The strike came just a day after Ukraine reported one of the heaviest Russian aerial assaults in months, which involved more than 600 drones and 70 missiles.
Diaspora Digital Media reported that the attack killed at least 11 people and damaged sites across the country, including a historic Orthodox monastery in Kyiv.
Moscow’s mayor, Sergey Sobyanin, said on state media that several drones had been launched toward the capital in the past 24 hours and that one of them struck the refinery facility.
“Over the past 24 hours, enemy drone attacks on Moscow have continued. One of the drones damaged a Moscow oil refinery facility. There were no casualties,” he said.
Russian authorities said around 60 drones targeting the Moscow region were intercepted on Tuesday, describing it as one of the largest aerial attacks on the capital this year.
The Kapotnya district, where the refinery operated by energy giant Gazprom is located, was temporarily closed to traffic as emergency crews responded to the incident.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed Kyiv’s involvement, saying the strike demonstrated Ukraine’s ability to hit targets far inside Russian territory.
“This time, the Moscow region felt the reach of Ukraine’s long-range capabilities. An oil refinery was hit at a distance of 500 kilometres,” Zelensky said, adding that the attack was a “just response” to ongoing Russian strikes.
He also released footage appearing to show a drone striking an industrial area near residential buildings, followed by an explosion and thick smoke rising from the site.
Kyiv has intensified its drone and missile operations against Russian infrastructure in recent months, increasingly targeting oil refineries and export facilities that play a key role in financing Moscow’s war effort.
Russia, meanwhile, has continued near-daily air attacks on Ukraine since launching its full-scale invasion in 2022, with both sides escalating long-range strikes in recent weeks.
The latest exchange underscores a widening cycle of retaliation, even as international pressure grows for renewed diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.
