Ukraine struck with a drone a Russian refinery in the republic of Bashkortostan, at a record distance of nearly 1,200 km from its border, a source in the Ukrainian defense sector told AFP on Thursday. “A long-range drone ‘paid a visit’ to the republic of Bashkortostan, where it struck the Neftekhim Salavat refinery (of the Russian giant) Gazprom”, located in the town of Salavat, the source said. According to this source, the drone broke a “record” by flying a distance of 1,500 kilometers to hit this refinery, one of the largest in Russia and located in Salavat.
No casualties or fire
This Russian city, populated by 150,000 inhabitants, is located as the crow flies nearly 1,200 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. On Telegram, the leader of Bashkortostan, Radi Khabirov, confirmed that a drone attack had hit the Salavat industrial zone around 1 p.m. local time (0800 GMT) and caused “smoke” in part of the refinery, which ” functions normally,” according to this source. “This is an attempt to spoil our celebration,” he wrote, referring to the commemorations in Russia on May 9 of the victory against Nazi Germany.
The local Ministry of Emergency Situations, on Telegram, affirmed that the incident did not cause any casualties or spark a fire, and that around thirty rescuers intervened on the spot. Ukraine, which has been fighting the Russian invasion for more than two years, has intensified its strikes on Russian military and energy sites since the start of the year, sometimes very far from its border.
Washington criticized, according to media reports, these attacks by kyiv against energy installations in Russia and demanded an end to them. Since the start of its invasion, Russia has systematically struck civilian sites in Ukraine, starting with its energy infrastructure. A new massive attack of this type hit the country again on Wednesday.