Ukraine has launched one of its largest drone attacks against Russia this year, striking a major oil terminal in St. Petersburg amid escalating tensions with US President Donald Trump over attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.
Key Highlights
- Russia says it intercepted 1,015 Ukrainian drones overnight.
- The St Petersburg Oil Terminal, with capacity of 12.5 million tonnes a year, was hit.
- One person was killed and five injured at an Ozon logistics centre in St Petersburg.
- Zelensky says Russia attacked Ukraine’s energy sector 76 times since the ceasefire was announced.
- Kyiv raises concerns over Starlink restrictions affecting its drones.
The overnight assault, which occurred between Saturday and Sunday, October 18, came despite Trump’s demand that Kyiv stop targeting Russian energy facilities as Washington seeks to ease pressure on global oil and diesel prices.
Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed it intercepted 1,015 Ukrainian drones across various parts of the country during the overnight attacks.
Russian authorities confirmed that the St Petersburg Oil Terminal was among the targets. The facility has the capacity to handle up to 12.5 million tonnes of oil annually.
Ukraine’s drone manufacturer, Fire Point, said a fire broke out within the terminal’s premises following the strike.
A logistics centre in St Petersburg was also attacked, according to Russian distribution company Ozon. Local authorities reported that one person was killed and five others injured, while several residential buildings were damaged.
Rift With Trump Over Energy Strikes
The latest strikes come amid worsening relations between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Trump, who last week described Ukraine’s attacks on Russian oil refineries as a “disgrace.”
Trump had earlier announced that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to stop attacking each other’s energy infrastructure. However, neither Kyiv nor Moscow publicly confirmed the agreement.
Ukraine temporarily suspended such attacks but has since resumed them, while Kyiv maintains that Russia has continued striking Ukrainian energy facilities and cities.
According to Ukrainian authorities, Russian missile and drone attacks killed 11 people and injured nearly 50 others across Ukraine in the 24 hours leading up to Sunday morning.
The attacks reportedly included a major assault on energy facilities in the Odesa region.
Zelensky Accuses Russia of 76 Violations
Zelensky, in a statement posted on X on Sunday, accused Russia of repeatedly violating the proposed energy ceasefire.
“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 urged Washington to recognise what he described as Moscow’s failure to reciprocate diplomatic gestures and sanctions relief.
“America should see that Russia is not taking any reciprocal steps in response to sanctions relief or agreements,” Zelensky added, accusing Russia of interpreting opportunities to generate revenue as encouragement to continue the war.
The dispute has intensified following Trump’s decision to waive certain sanctions affecting Russian energy supplies, including restrictions on Russian diesel imports.
On Friday, he also invoked a waiver exempting Russia from sweeping economic penalties mandated by the US Congress, drawing criticism from some Republican lawmakers.
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Starlink Restrictions
Meanwhile, Zelensky has raised concerns over restrictions affecting Ukraine’s access to Starlink satellite communications, which its military uses to operate some drones.
Speaking on Saturday, the Ukrainian president said the system’s limitations had affected the performance of certain battlefield drones.
He claimed that drones travelling above 161 kilometres per hour lose their Starlink connection, rendering them unusable.
Zelensky also said the restrictions had affected Ukraine’s ability to use Starlink and Starshield systems to intercept jet-powered Shahed drones, which have caused extensive damage across the country.
Starshield is a satellite communications system designed primarily for government and national-security operations.
According to Zelensky, the restrictions apply within Ukrainian territory but not within the European Union, raising concerns in Kyiv about the country’s ability to defend itself.
The Trump administration, however, has denied restricting the service.
Ukraine also said last week that it was facing Russian ballistic missile attacks without receiving advance warnings from its allies, raising further concerns about the reliability of intelligence support as the war continues.
The latest developments highlight the growing strain between Washington and Kyiv as Ukraine faces another winter of Russian attacks, while diplomatic efforts to halt strikes on energy infrastructure remain uncertain.
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