Ukraine strikes Russian energy infrastructure as Russia intensifies pressure on Kyiv

Ukraine has launched a series of drone attacks against targets deep inside Russia, including oil refineries, while Moscow continues to intensify air strikes on Ukrainian cities. The escalation has unfolded despite increased diplomatic efforts to end the war, with US initiatives so far failing to produce an agreement on a ceasefire.

Russian authorities reported several deaths and injuries after Ukrainian drone attacks in multiple regions and occupied Crimea. In Perm, more than 1,100 kilometers east of Moscow, one person died and four were wounded, according to regional Governor Dmitry Makhonin. A multistorey building was damaged, and Makhonin said 27 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted over the Perm region.

A man was killed and two people were injured in the border Belgorod region, in the town of Grayvoron. Regional authorities also reported property damage and fires. In Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014 in a move rejected by Ukraine and most of the international community, local authorities said two people were killed, including a teenage girl. They also reported damage to eight apartment buildings. The Russian accounts could not be independently verified.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukrainian forces had attacked targets in Russia. He said an oil refinery in the Ryazan region, about 480 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, was damaged. Refineries in the Perm region and Tatarstan were also reportedly targeted, along with a facility for storing and launching drones in the Kursk region and a target in the Black Sea. The Guardian described the strikes on Russia’s energy infrastructure as part of a broader Ukrainian strategy to reduce Russia’s ability to finance and supply military operations.

Meanwhile, Kyiv is facing almost continuous air alerts. A BBC analysis of Ukrainian official data recorded 76 alerts in the capital between August 27 and September 2, more than in any comparable week since the full-scale invasion began. Since the end of August, alerts have sounded about 10 times a day on average. Some last only minutes, while others continue for nearly four and a half hours. Attacks are also increasingly occurring during the day, disrupting schools, businesses and public transport. Ukrainian authorities have warned about a new generation of Russian attack drones with jet engines, which they say can reach about 595 kilometers per hour, roughly three times the speed of older propeller-driven Shahed drones.