Ukraine struck a major Moscow oil refinery for the second time in a week and disrupted commercial flights at Moscow airports in one of its largest drone attacks since Russia's full-scale invasion began over four years ago, Russian officials reported Thursday.
Attack Details
The attack occurred hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated he had held "an important coordination call" with U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron that could "bring about significant change." Zelenskyy also said Wednesday that Ukraine had secured key pledges of further support from world leaders attending the G7 summit in France, including the United States.
Images and video released by Russian media showed massive fires raging at the Moscow Oil Refinery, located about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from the Kremlin. Thick black clouds of smoke rose over the city.
The Moscow Oil Refinery is one of Russia's largest refineries, according to its official website, and accounts for more than a third of the fuel market in the capital region. It was last attacked by Ukrainian drones on June 16, catching fire, but officials said that blaze was quickly extinguished.
Ukraine has repeatedly targeted Russia's oil facilities, aiming to cut Moscow's revenue for the war and make Russians feel the consequences of the invasion.
Disruptions and Damage
Flights from four Moscow airports were temporarily halted, transport and aviation authorities said. In the surrounding Moscow region, a drone hit a residential building in the town of Zhukovsky, and the building was evacuated, according to Governor Andrei Vorobyov.
Elsewhere in the region, drone debris struck private houses, a car, a fitness center, an unspecified industrial facility, and a large mall, whose roof caught fire, Vorobyov said. One woman was injured, he added.
Russian Air Defense Response
The Russian Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 555 Ukrainian drones overnight across multiple regions, with almost 200 intercepted as they approached the Russian capital. That was roughly double the number of drones Russia launched at Ukraine overnight, according to the Ukrainian air force.
The attack was the latest embarrassment for Russian President Vladimir Putin, following a Ukrainian drone attack on his hometown of St. Petersburg earlier this month while he hosted a showcase economic forum with foreign VIP visitors.
Putin on Thursday was in Kazan, some 700 kilometers (430 miles) east of Moscow, hosting leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations as Russia seeks to bolster business and other ties with the regional bloc.
Zelenskyy's Statement
Zelenskyy said the attack on Moscow was part of Ukraine's efforts to force Putin to the negotiating table. "This is a fully justified response to Russian attacks on our cities and communities, and another important result of our warriors' work against facilities that sustain Russia's war machine," the Ukrainian leader said on social media. "It is time the war ended, and Russia must take the necessary steps in diplomacy."
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X: "One of the most popular questions asked by Muscovites this morning is 'What is going on?' I can answer. Your country started a war of aggression against ours. For years, it has been killing our people. Now that you know what's going on, ask Putin when he is planning to end it."
Western Support and Battlefield Momentum
As well as gaining pledges of more diplomatic and military help from Western supporters at the G7 summit, Ukraine has recently gained momentum on the battlefield against Russia's larger army thanks to its high-tech drones, Western officials and analysts say. In addition to disrupting Russian oil production, longer-range drone strikes are choking Russian supply lines in occupied regions of Ukraine.
French President Emmanuel Macron said the G7 summit was "very important for Ukraine" because its supporters — crucially including the United States — vowed to help it, although the French president provided no details. The U.S. under Trump has cut back assistance to Ukraine, leaving the Europeans as the biggest suppliers of military and financial aid. Trump and Zelenskyy have had an at times strained relationship.
"America is with us on Ukraine, that is very important," Macron said. "And now we will continue to advance to help Ukraine to resist" and to build up its "capacity to defend itself and capacity to counterattack," Macron told reporters as he and Trump left the Palace of Versailles near Paris.
