Russia says it shot down about 1,015 drones in what ABC News says would be among the largest attacks of the war, and the St. Petersburg oil terminal was among the sites hit, ABC News reported. It would also be the biggest strike St. Petersburg has ever faced. The governor says one person was killed and five were injured. This Ukraine drone attack may also be the clearest sign yet that Trump’s “energy ceasefire” is not holding.
What a Ukrainian drone barrage means for your gas pump
This is not just a battlefield story. The Kyiv Independent reports Trump has pressured Ukraine to stop hitting Russian oil, arguing the strikes push up global prices. With midterms coming and fuel costs on voters’ minds, every fire at a Russian terminal is also a political problem in Washington. The same pressure shows up in the fight between Trump and Zelenskiy over diesel.
What the Ukrainian drone strike hit in St. Petersburg
Governor Alexander Beglov confirmed fires at the oil terminal, the Ruchyi oil depot and industrial warehouses in Kolpinsky District. Twelve apartment buildings and two houses were also damaged, according to the Kyiv Independent.
The terminal is a major target. The Kyiv Independent describes it as one of Russia’s largest fuel storage and export facilities, with annual throughput of 12.5 million tons. Hitting it puts pressure on a key point in Russia’s fuel exports.
Russian state media also reported hits on an Ozon logistics center and a VK data center, the Washington Times reported. Video appears to show a drone striking a large bridge in the city, but there is no official confirmation or damage assessment. Casualty and damage figures are Russian official claims and have not been independently verified.
Why this Ukraine drone assault is awkward for Washington
The strike lands one week after President Trump announced an “energy ceasefire” on Oct. 11, without spelling out what it covered. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the announcement “was news for me.” Russia kept hitting Ukrainian energy sites anyway. Our earlier piece on the energy ceasefire claim and Moscow’s silence covers how the announcement unfolded.
Zelensky says Russia attacked Ukraine’s energy and oil and gas sectors 76 times in the week since. “Since the American president announced the energy ceasefire a week ago, Russia has deliberately attacked Ukraine’s energy and oil and gas sectors 76 times,” he said. He added that Russia used almost 2,700 attack drones, 1,700 aerial bombs and 66 missiles, mostly ballistic. “The Russians are trying to cause a blackout,” he said.
Zelensky says Ukraine held off on hitting Russian refineries for several days after Trump’s announcement. Al Jazeera reports he told the Financial Times this week that Kyiv was “done” with the ceasefire and would resume strikes on Russian refineries. For more on the ground war, see our report on Russia’s renewed winter offensive.
Trump’s response to this attack was not available as of this reporting.
