Ukraine Hits Russian Oil Refinery and Military Targets in New Year Drone Strikes
Ukraine’s Defense Forces carried out a series of coordinated strikes against key Russian military and energy facilities overnight on January 1.
The Gaze informs about it, referring to a post by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Ukrainian strike drones successfully hit the Ilsky oil refinery in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai. The attack caused a fire at the facility, with confirmed impacts recorded on site.
The General Staff also confirmed a successful strike on the Almetyevsk oil treatment installation in Russia’s Republic of Tatarstan. Damage assessments for that target are still underway.
Beyond energy infrastructure, Ukrainian forces targeted multiple military assets in occupied parts of Donetsk region. Near Donetsk city, a storage facility housing Shahed/Geran-type attack drones was struck.
In the vicinity of Shevchenko settlement, Ukrainian forces hit a Russian Tor-M2 surface-to-air missile system. Meanwhile, near Ilovaisk, a fuel and lubricants depot belonging to Russia’s 51st Army caught fire following a direct hit.
Separately, Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces reported a broader overnight drone operation. Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, said Ukrainian drones struck ten Russian military and infrastructure targets during New Year’s night.
According to Brovdi, the strikes hit objectives both inside Russian territory and in occupied areas of Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia regions, as well as Crimea. Among the targets were two oil facilities inside Russia and the Rovenky oil depot in Luhansk region.
Ukrainian drones also struck a Kasta-2E2 radar station in Crimea and a radar site at the Hvardiiske military airfield, which Russian forces use to prepare Iskander-M missile launches and Shahed drone attacks.
In Russia’s Belgorod region, Ukrainian forces hit two troop concentration points and another fuel depot near the town of Valuyki. Brovdi noted that Ukrainian units destroyed a Tor air defense system in the Donetsk region, marking the third such system eliminated within a single day.
As The Gaze previously informed, Ukraine sharply intensified attacks on Russian energy assets in December, hitting more targets across a wider range of facilities than in any previous month.
Read more on The Gaze: Why Ukraine Should be Allowed to Attack Russian Oil Refineries – Benefits for the US and EU