Ukraine has been systematically attacking Russian oil facilities, like this one in Tuapse, for some time now.Image: www.imago-images.de
May 31, 2026, 10:25 amMay 31, 2026, 10:45 am
Ukraine attacked oil facilities in Russia again with drones last night. An oil depot near the city of Taganrog on the Sea of Azov and a refinery in Saratov on the Volga came under fire, the online newspaper “Ukrainskaya Pravda” reported. Russian authorities have partially confirmed the hits. The attack is likely to have serious consequences, especially in Saratov, judging by the images circulating online.
Drones struck the Saratov Oil Refinery – one of Russia’s oldest refineries with a processing capacity of about 5 million tons per year.
It produces more than 20 types of petroleum products, including gasoline, diesel fuel, fuel oil, vacuum gas oil, and technical sulfur. pic.twitter.com/3C7wEex8dL
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) May 31, 2026
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Ukraine just hit Taganrog airbase, 600 kilometers inside Russia.
Two Tu-142 maritime patrol aircraft destroyed. An Iskander-M missile complex gone.
The Tu-142 is a Soviet-era beast built to hunt submarines across ocean distances. Losing 2 in a single drone strike at a base… https://t.co/UybmMRtVjn pic.twitter.com/yojc8mThA6
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 30, 2026
“According to preliminary information, there is damage to civil infrastructure objects,” wrote the governor of Saratov, Roman Bussargin, on Telegram. He didn’t give any details. The refinery in Saratov belongs to the state oil company Rosneft, which is headed by Igor Sechin, a close confidant of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. The facility has already been the target of Ukrainian attacks in the past.
Rostov Governor Yuri Slyussar confirmed on Telegram that there was a fire at an oil storage facility near Taganrog in the Matveyev-Kurgan district. The extinguishing work continued, he wrote on Telegram.
According to the Russian military, more than 200 Ukrainian drones were intercepted overnight. Drone attacks are now part of everyday life in the war ordered by Putin more than four years ago and are used by both sides. They repeatedly attack objects deep in the enemy’s hinterland. (sda/dpa/fwa)