Ukraine launched what Russian officials described as an unprecedented wave of drone strikes on the St. Petersburg region Saturday, hitting military facilities and an oil depot hundreds of miles inside Russian territory on the final day of Russia’s flagship international economic forum.
More than 140 drones were intercepted over the surrounding Leningrad region, according to regional governor Aleksandr Drozdenko, who said the attacks caused a fire at an unidentified military facility and forced the evacuation of nearby residents. The city’s governor, Alexander Beglov, took the unusual step of urging residents to stay indoors, the first such directive since the war began more than four years ago.
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the operation, saying Ukrainian drones had traveled more than 1,000 kilometers to strike the region, with targets including naval arsenals and a base at Kronstadt, the main outpost of Russia’s Baltic Fleet. A separate strike hit an oil depot in the southern Krasnodar region, roughly 500 kilometers away, as part of what Zelensky referred to as Ukraine’s “long-range sanctions,” a term Kyiv uses for deep-strike operations inside Russian territory.
The commander of one of the units involved described conditions inside Russia as favorable for drone operations. “We fly in Russia like it’s our own territory. Almost no resistance, not hard to reach a target,” Yevhen Karas, commander of the 413th Regiment Raid of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, told the BBC.
The strikes come a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, rejected Zelensky’s call for direct ceasefire negotiations. Putin said a truce would only allow Ukraine to regroup, and stated he would end the war only once Russia’s stated objectives were achieved. Russia’s longstanding position requires Ukraine to withdraw from the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, most of which Russian forces currently occupy, and to abandon any pursuit of NATO membership. Ukraine has refused to cede territory, arguing that doing so would invite future aggression.
In an open letter to Putin Thursday, Zelensky had called for face-to-face talks and a ceasefire, writing that it would be wrong to simply wait for the conflict to regain the attention of the United States. President Donald Trump has been involved in mediation efforts, though his administration’s focus has recently shifted to the conflict with Iran.
Saturday’s strikes were the second time in days that Ukrainian drones targeted areas near St. Petersburg during the forum, which drew thousands of guests from 130 countries, including a US delegation attending for the first time in years.
Zelensky said it was time to end the war, and accused Putin of choosing to continue fighting.
Sources: BBC News, Reuters
