Ukraine’s drones hit a major Russian refinery 800 miles from the border

Key Points:

• Ukrainian drones attacked the Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat refinery in Russia’s Bashkortostan, causing a fire and damaging one of the country’s largest oil refining and petrochemical complexes located about 1,300 kilometers from Ukraine’s border.
• The attacks on Russian oil infrastructure, including the recent strike on the Orsk refinery which may take up to six months to repair, have reduced Russia’s refining capacity and caused fuel shortages, part of Ukraine’s strategy to pressure Moscow into peace talks.
• Russia retaliated with missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, killing civilians including two railway workers in Odesa and two men in Kherson, while also suffering casualties in Crimea due to an explosion during an inspection of a Ukrainian attack site.
• Ukraine continues to seek more U.S.-made Patriot interceptor missiles to defend against Russian ballistic missile strikes, but has received only a fraction of the requested supply amid limited global stocks and competing demands.
• European countries have spent billions on military aid to Ukraine in the first half of 2026, maintaining military support levels close to last year despite a significant drop in financial and humanitarian aid, while the U.S. facilitates equipment sales without direct aid.