Ukraine resumes drone strikes on Russian oil refineries
Ukrainian long-range drones targeted facilities in the Nizhny Novgorod and Samara regions despite reported pressure from the US.
Ukrainian long-range drones targeted the Kstovo oil refinery in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region overnight on Sunday, according to reports from The Times of India and Times Now. This strike followed an attack on the Rosneft-owned Novokuybyshevsk refinery in the Samara region on Friday.
The attacks come despite reported efforts by US President Donald Trump to persuade Kyiv to stop hitting Moscow's energy infrastructure. While The Wall Street Journal reported that Ukraine had agreed to a White House request to cease such strikes, Ukrainian officials told the Kyiv Independent that Kyiv never agreed to a 30-day suspension proposed by Jared Kushner, the US President's son-in-law.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy defended the operations, stating that Ukraine is responding to Moscow's continued strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure. Zelenskyy reported that Russian drone and ballistic missile attacks hit four Ukrainian regions overnight, leaving hundreds of thousands of households without electricity.
Zelenskyy also stated that Russian forces suffered 54,400 casualties, including those killed and wounded, during October. He claimed Ukrainian forces recaptured 96.2 sq km of territory in the same month, which was 10.4 sq km more than territory captured by Russian forces.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kyiv is continuing its strikes despite the position of Washington. Russian officials have maintained that these attacks on energy facilities undermine efforts to reach a negotiated settlement.
