KYIV (Dispatches) - Ukraine carried out an overnight strike on the Saratov oil refinery in southwestern Russia, the general staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in a statement on Tuesday.
Explosions and a fire were recorded in the area of the facility, and the extent of the damage is currently being assessed, the statement said.
The Saratov refinery, which processed 4.8 million tons of oil in 2023, produces over 20 types of petroleum products, including gasoline and diesel fuel.
Ukrainian authorities previously reported strikes on the oil refinery in February and August.
Russian forces also bombarded the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia with rockets overnight, wounding 20 people, including four children, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday as he urged European leaders to make the continent safe by building an ambitious air defense umbrella.
There has been no let-up in Russian strikes on civilian areas of Ukraine and its army’s push on the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line.
A settlement to end the war appears to be no closer despite months of U.S.-led peace efforts. U.S. President Donald Trump’s ultimatums and deadlines for Putin to engage with proposals to stop the fighting have passed without obvious consequences.
Just over the past two weeks, Zelenskyy said on Telegram, Russia has launched more than 3,500 drones, more than 2,500 powerful glide bombs and almost 200 missiles at targets inside Ukraine.