Ukraine Drone Strikes Major Oil Pipeline Inside Russian Territory: Official
© Petro Zadorozhnyy; Katja Buchholz/AFP via Getty Images; Getty Images
Above, a photo of a German oil refinery that receives Russian crude through the Druzhba pipeline, with an inset image of Ukrainian forces deploying a drone. Russian officials on Tuesday claim that a Ukrainian drone struck of Druzhba pumping station.
A Russian government official on Tuesday alleged that a Ukrainian drone strike had targeted a major oil pipeline station in Russian territory.
The claim originated in a post from Aleksandr Bogomaz, the governor of Russia's Bryansk region, on his official Telegram account. Bryansk is located along the far western edge of Russia and notably shares a border with the northeastern edge of Ukraine. In his post, Bogomaz said that the Ukrainian drone targeted a pumping station operated by the Transneft oil company.
The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine has lasted for over a year, far longer than most experts believe Russia expected its operation in the neighboring nation to take. With the prolonged conflict taking a heavy toll on Russian resources, and with numerous Western nations imposing economic sanctions due to its invasion of Ukraine, the country's remaining exports have become vital, especially its vast oil and gas industry. Recently, the Russian energy giant, Gazprom, announced a major deal to provide oil to China.
The pipeline allegedly targeted on Tuesday, built during the Soviet era and known as Druzhba, is located several kilometers away from the border with Ukraine and is one of the largest pipelines in the world, according to the Moscow Times. It is known to provide oil to European nations like Germany, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Bogomaz said that there were not casualties in the strike and that measures were being taken in nearby regions to address the situation.
"The Armed Forces of Ukraine, using [unmanned aerial vehicles], attacked the territory of the Novozybkov [pumping station] of Transneft JSC," Bogonaz wrote on Telegram, as translated by Google software. "There were no casualties. Operational services are on site. In order to ensure security for the duration of the operational activities, the power was turned off in the settlements of Mamai, Trostan, Druzhba, Snovskoye, Dubrovka. After carrying out operational and investigative measures, power supply will be resumed."
Newsweek was not able to independently verify the report from Bogomaz. Ukrainian officials have yet to accept or deny responsibility for the strike, or comment on the situation at all. Newsweek reached out to Ukrainian government officials via email for comment.
The Moscow Times in its report on the situation noted that regions in Russia that are near Ukraine have reported numerous cross-border strikes since the invasion began in February 2022. Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that a group of "Ukrainian nationalists" had crossed the border into Bryansk and committed a "terrorist attack," killing one adult and one child, and holding a shop hostage before being pushed back into Ukraine.
