Ukraine Sustains Unrelenting Nightly Attacks on Russia’s Baltic Oil Ports
Ukrainian officials are reporting that they have maintained a series of unrelenting attacks designed to dramatically impact the oil export operations on the Baltic. Overnight into Sunday, they staged what they said was the fifth consecutive nightly attack on the Russian terminal at Ust-Luga.
The governor of the Leningrad region, Alexander Drozdenko, confirmed the attacks in a series of social media postings. He warned residents, initially saying they had destroyed 29, then 31, and then 36 drones. He also warned that additional attacks were possible throughout the day, with air defense forces on alert.
He sought to downplay the level of damage but confirmed there was damage and fires at Ust-Luga from the most recent attack. He reported that additional firefighting resources had been called in from the Leningrad region and St. Petersburg, including two fire trains. He later reported the fires had been contained while also saying drone debris had damaged a nearby residential building.
Satellite pictures, however, seem to show more extensive damage. Residents have been warned not to post photos, but some are leaking onto social media showing large plumes of smoke and workers evacuated. Ukraine asserted that as much as 40 percent of the export capacity has been impacted.
The attacks have alternated between Ust-Luga, which Reuters says ships 700,000 barels were day, and Primorsky, which it says handles one million barrels per day. Storage tanks and loading facilities are believed to have been damaged, as well as railroad tracks. Bloomberg notes the two terminals handle nearly half of Russia’s crude oil exports.
It is not the first time Ukraine has struck the terminals. They hit Ust-Luga in 2025. Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters, however, that long-range drones are becoming more effective. He said they are being technically refined.
Zelensky asserted that the systematic targeting of the oil operations, including also hitting refineries, was in response to Russia’s attacks over the past few months on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. “We responded with a strong blow, reducing the possibility of Ust-Luga,” he said.
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Ukraine’s Security Service confirmed that they had hit the two terminals on successive days. Yevhenii Khmara said they were aiming at reducing Russia’s ability to finance the war through oil revenues. The strikes come as oil prices skyrocketed above $100 pr barrle due to the war with Iran.
Russian officials said they had shot down a total of 155 Ukrainian drones over 16 regions last night. It responded by launching 442 drones and one missile into Ukraine.