Ukraine struck Russia’s Ryazan oil refinery on October 15 after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv had ended its brief suspension of attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.
The move followed days of Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine, including energy facilities, after U.S. President Donald Trump announced what he called an immediate “energy ceasefire” on October 11. Neither Moscow nor Kyiv initially confirmed that a detailed agreement had been reached.
Fire at Refinery Supplying Moscow
Ryazan regional Gov. Pavel Malkov said a major Ukrainian drone attack caused a fire at the refinery and that the damage was being assessed. A Ukrainian official confirmed that the plant was targeted. The Rosneft-owned refinery, southeast of Moscow, accounts for nearly 5% of Russia’s refinery throughput and helps supply the capital, Reuters reported.
Russian officials said the attack ran counter to U.S. peace efforts. The Kremlin also said the scope of the proposed energy ceasefire had never been settled. Russia has maintained that Ukrainian refinery strikes did not fully stop, while Kyiv says it paused them and resumed only after Moscow continued attacking Ukrainian energy targets. The competing claims cannot all be independently verified.
Brief Pause Ends After New Russian Attacks
Trump said on October 11 that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to stop attacking energy infrastructure, but provided no terms. Zelenskyy said Ukraine would halt refinery strikes if Russia stopped attacking Ukraine’s energy system. Reuters reported at the time that Moscow had not immediately confirmed the arrangement.
In the overnight attacks preceding the Ryazan strike, Russia launched more than 500 drones, according to Ukrainian authorities. Three people were killed and six wounded in the central Kirovohrad region. Ukraine’s state-owned Naftogaz said a gas extraction facility in Poltava was damaged and operations there were suspended.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine could consider another halt in attacks on energy targets only in exchange for additional U.S.-made Patriot interceptors. The renewed strikes deepen tensions between Kyiv and Washington as Trump links attacks on Russian refineries to higher global diesel prices.
The Associated Press also confirmed the Ryazan fire and Ukraine’s decision to abandon the brief pause.
Source: Vesti Baku