Ukrainian Drones Hit Russia's Ryazan Refinery Overnight: Second Refinery Struck This Week as Russian Diesel Cargoes to the U.S. Draw Scrutiny
London — The Ryazan oil refinery in Russia appeared to have come under attack overnight on November 5 as part of a large drone strike, Reuters reported, citing a video analysis by the agency. Ryazan regional governor Pavel Malkov said more than 200 drones targeted the region overnight, with debris damaging power lines and cutting electricity to parts of the city of Ryazan, fires breaking out at industrial sites and one person injured. By Thursday, power in the city had been restored and the fires contained or extinguished. The Ryazan refinery, owned by Rosneft, processes more than 17 million tonnes of crude a year, is one of Russia's largest, and supplies petrol, diesel and jet fuel to Moscow and central Russia. Rosneft did not comment.
It was the second Russian refinery struck this week: overnight on November 3, Ukrainian drones hit the Yaroslavl refinery. Ukraine's strikes on Russian refineries this year forced large amounts of processing capacity in western Russia offline and caused domestic fuel shortages that led Moscow to impose fuel export bans from April, later partially lifted. Reports in late October said Ukraine had informally paused refinery strikes at Washington's request until at least after the U.S. midterm elections; the Ryazan attack marks the breakdown of that pause.
The strike came as a U.S.-Russia diesel arrangement drew scrutiny: in October, the United States reached a deal with the Kremlin to resume Russian diesel exports to international markets. Shipping data show at least six Russian diesel cargoes have broadcast plans for transatlantic voyages, two of them changed course, and none has yet arrived in the United States; the first U.S.-bound shipment is expected in New York this weekend, though discharge is not guaranteed. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there was no connection between the tankers' course changes and the U.S. election result, while presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev said the U.S.-bound Russian diesel cargoes were continuing on course.
Related: Ukrainian Drones Strike Yaroslavl Refinery: Governor Says 124 Drones, Two Employees Injured
Source: Reuters
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：俄罗斯梁赞炼油厂（资料照片，2020年）。照片 CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Ryazan oil refinery in Russia (file photo, 2020). CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
