Ukraine launched a massive drone assault on Russia overnight, with Moscow among the main targets. Russia’s defense ministry said air defenses intercepted 555 Ukrainian drones nationwide, nearly 200 of them over the Moscow region. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said some drones reached a refinery in southeastern Moscow, and a nearby shopping center was lightly damaged. Videos from the site showed repeated hits on the refinery, a major fuel supplier for the capital, including an exploding storage tank and a Pantsir interceptor being fired at one of the drones.
The attack set off severe disruption in Moscow. Flights at four airports were halted, passengers were evacuated from Sheremetyevo, and some sheltered in parking lots before restrictions were later lifted. Russian officials also said the refinery fire came as black smoke covered the city. At the same time, Russia fired ballistic missiles at Kyiv, which reported a second air attack this week, while a drone strike killed one person in Sumy in northeastern Ukraine.
The escalation came after President Volodymyr Zelensky held coordination calls with U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron. Zelensky said Ukraine received new pledges of support at the G7 summit, and reports said Trump agreed to increase pressure on Vladimir Putin. Macron said G7 countries were united behind Ukraine and would keep strengthening its ability to defend itself and launch counterattacks.
Ukraine is also intensifying what it calls a logistical blockade of Crimea. In recent weeks, Ukrainian forces have attacked dozens of trucks and trains on the Novorossiya route and damaged bridges linking Crimea to Russian-held territory in southern Ukraine. Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s unmanned systems forces, told The New York Times the aim is to create a “logistical blockade” of Crimea. Fuel shortages are already widespread, with long queues, empty pumps, rationing by vouchers and QR codes, and reports that nearly 80% of bookings made in late May and early June were canceled. Supermarkets have also seen shortages of sugar, rice and pasta, while Ukraine says it is expanding drone production toward 7 million drones this year.
