The port city of Kerch in the east of the Crimean peninsula is often the target of Ukrainian drone attacks.Image: Imago
June 23, 2026, 11:03June 23, 2026, 11:03
According to media reports, Ukraine has again attacked strategically important objects in the Russian Black Sea region of Krasnodar and on the Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Moscow. An oil terminal and an oil depot near the large city of Kerch in the east of Crimea were also hit, the internet portal “Ukrainskaya Pravda” reported. On the opposite side of the strait, the port of Kavkaz in the Krasnodar Territory, a facility that had previously been attacked, was also attacked again.
Overnight, the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched yet another large-scale drone attack against Russian-occupied Crimea, targeting military sites and energy infrastructure near the Kerch Strait. pic.twitter.com/7ddIVmjkAz
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 23, 2026
There is currently no official confirmation of the attacks. The Russian Defense Ministry only reported the downing of a total of 143 Ukrainian drones, without providing any information about the consequences. Images and videos circulating on social networks show explosions and fires at night and dark clouds of smoke in the morning. The airports in Krasnodar and Sochi were closed to air traffic for hours. In any case, no passenger planes have landed in Crimea since the war against Ukraine, which was ordered by Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin more than four years ago.
The city of Kerch in eastern Crimea
In recent months, Ukraine has increasingly attacked oil industry objects to defend itself against the Russian invasion. This is intended to make it more difficult for the attacking Russian troops to supply fuel and for Moscow to finance the war. The residents of Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, are particularly feeling the consequences. For days now, private individuals on the peninsula have not been able to refuel due to a lack of gasoline. (nil/sda/dpa)