Ukraine's tanker and refinery strikes deepen Russia's fuel crisis
Drone campaign hits shadow-fleet tankers and a sixth major refinery
Ukraine has stepped up its campaign against Russian shipping and oil infrastructure, striking dozens of shadow-fleet tankers around the Kerch Strait and Sea of Azov while long-range drones hit another major refinery.
Ukrainian drone forces said they struck more than 20 Russian shadow-fleet vessels over 72 hours, hitting at least 19 tankers with kamikaze drones. Early strikes set two fuel-laden tankers ablaze on the Taganrog-Crimea route; the following night eight more small Russian-flagged tankers of around 7,000 dwt were destroyed, with further vessels hit above the Kerch Strait. Russia confirmed damage to two tankers and injuries to two sailors, and a Chevron-chartered suezmax, the Yasa Polaris, was struck off Novorossiysk while inbound for Caspian Pipeline Consortium loadings.
The offensive is part of a 40-day operation authorised by president Volodymyr Zelensky, aimed at oil export revenue that funds roughly a quarter of Russia's state budget. On 6 July drones hit the Omsk refinery, Russia's largest, from more than 2,400 km away, the sixth major refinery halted since early June. Shortages have spread across most of Russia's regions, with output running well below summer demand, even as president Vladimir Putin called the situation not critical.
