Over 100 Ukraine drones targeted Russia overnight, damaging major Kstovo oil refinery

Moscow: Russia said on Sunday that a drone had struck an "industrial enterprise" east of Moscow overnight, after Ukraine claimed it had hit a major oil refinery.

Gleb Nikitin, governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region, reported a "massive drone attack" during the night, during which an "industrial enterprise in the Kstovo district sustained significant damage".

"More than 100 drones destroyed," and "according to preliminary information, there are no casualties," he added in a statement, without specifying the facility's operations.

Ukrainian media reported an attack on the Kstovo oil refinery, describing it as "one of Russia's largest oil refineries, producing fuel and lubricants".

Moscow had claimed on Friday that Ukraine had resumed its strikes on Russian oil refineries following a "pause" lasting several days.

Senior Russian official Alexander Novak told a reporter from state television that Ukraine had resumed attacks on Russian facilities, striking three oil refineries and one gas-chemical complex.

Kyiv has repeatedly struck Russian oil and gas installations in retaliation for Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure since Moscow launched its offensive in February 2022.

US President Donald Trump had been pressuring Kyiv for weeks to halt such attacks, attributing them to the rising cost of diesel.

AFP