Moscow burns as Ukraine strikes refinery and oil depots

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin confirmed what many residents could already see from their windows in the early hours of 18 June: fires were burning across the city as Ukraine's long-range drone campaign reached deep into the heart of Russia.

"The air defence forces are continuing to repel the massive attack. Several drones managed to reach the Moscow Oil Refinery. Measures are being taken to deal with the consequences," Sobyanin wrote on Telegram.

The refinery, owned by Gazprom Neft, is one of Russia's most important fuel-processing facilities. The company also operates Russia's only offshore Arctic oil production platform, Prirazlomnoye, in the eastern Barents Sea.

The Moscow Oil Refinery processes approximately 11–12 million tonnes of crude oil annually and plays a key role in supplying the capital region with petrol and aviation fuel. It is reportedly supplying up to 40% of Moscow’s fuel.

Videos circulating on Telegram appeared to show Russian air-defence missiles repeatedly failing to intercept incoming drones. Despite their speed, the missiles struggled to hit the relatively slow-flying Ukrainian aircraft.

Flames engulfed parts of the refinery in Moscow's Kapotnya district, located only a few kilometres from the Kremlin. The strike marks the second drone attack on the facility in just three days.

"This is an entirely justified response to Russian strikes on our cities and communities and another important result of our warriors' work against facilities that support Russia's war machine," Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram.

State-controlled information agency TASS reported that 17 people, including two children, were injured by the drone attacks against Moscow. 

"All emergency and operational services are working in an enhanced mode and doing everything possible to ensure the safety of residents," Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobyov wrote on MAX, the state-controlled application. 

The assault also disrupted air traffic. Temporary flight restrictions were imposed at Moscow's three major airports — Vnukovo, Sheremetyevo and Domodedovo — while airspace around the capital was partially closed.

Similar restrictions were reported at airports in Kaluga, Penza, Saratov, Nizhny Novgorod and Nizhnekamsk.

By midday, arrivals and departures between Moscow and the northern Russian cities of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk were listed as either cancelled or delayed indefinitely.

According to Censor.NET, more than 300 drones were launched against targets across Russia during the early hours of 18 June, making it one of the largest drone attacks of the war.

If Vladimir Putin believed that the "Special Military Operation" would not affect Muscovites, that strategy has failed.