Ukraine Strikes Russian Oil Refinery After Two-Week Pause
Ukrainian drones attacked a Rosneft oil refinery and a food factory in Russia, ending a brief pause in strikes on energy infrastructure.
Ukrainian forces launched drone strikes on October 30 targeting the Novokuibyshevsk oil refinery in Samara Oblast and the Konservsushprod food factory in the Bryansk region. The refinery, operated by Rosneftegaz, produces jet fuel for the Russian Aerospace Forces. The drone manufacturer Fire Point claimed responsibility for the refinery strike, stating its FP-1 kamikaze drones damaged a diesel fuel hydrotreating unit.
These operations ended a nearly two-week unofficial pause in strikes on Russian oil infrastructure. This hiatus followed pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to stabilize global fuel prices and was expected to last until after the U.S. midterm elections. Simultaneously, massive drone activity prompted the closure of four major Moscow airports, with Mayor Sergey Sobyanin reporting 862 drones flying toward the region.
Russia responded with strikes against Ukrainian targets, including the Kyiv Radio Plant, the Fanplit drone assembly facility, and electrical substations in the Kyiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Russian attacks in Dnipro, Chernihiv, and Kremenchuk killed 19 people and injured 71 others. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for increased European Union support for air defenses following these casualties, while European Council President Antonio Costa reaffirmed the EU's commitment to Kyiv.
