Ukrainian drone attacks sparked fires at oil facilities in St Petersburg on Sunday, as Kyiv launched more than 1,000 drones across Russia in one of its largest aerial offensives of the war.
The strikes came amid growing tensions between Ukraine and Washington, with US President Donald Trump criticizing Kyiv for targeting Russian oil infrastructure.
One person was killed and five others injured in the attacks, which caused fires at the Petersburg Oil Terminal and the Ruchi oil depot, according to local Governor Alexander Beglov. Russian retailer Ozon said its logistics centre was also targeted, while technology company VK confirmed an attack on its data centre.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had intercepted or destroyed 1,015 Ukrainian drones over 15 Russian regions, the annexed Crimean Peninsula and the Black Sea.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian state news agency TASS that Ukraine was resisting Moscow’s invasion but could not alter the current course of events.
Meanwhile, Russian attacks on the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia killed a woman and injured at least two others, including a six-year-old girl, local officials said.
The strikes damaged two apartment buildings, 18 cars and an educational institution, according to Mykhailo Semikin, head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration.
Ukraine Accuses Russia of Continuing Energy Strikes
On October 11, US President Donald Trump announced that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to an “energy ceasefire” in the war, which has continued for more than four years. However, he provided few details about the arrangement, and Kyiv reported further Russian attacks on energy facilities after the announcement.
Ukraine confirmed on Thursday that it had resumed strikes on Russian oil infrastructure following a three-day pause.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticised Russia for continuing to target his country's energy infrastructure, apparently disregarding Trump's call for both sides to halt such attacks. Kyiv had initially said it was observing the proposed ceasefire.
In a post on X on Sunday, Zelenskyy said Russia had carried out 76 attacks on Ukraine's energy, oil and gas sectors in the week since Trump's announcement.
He added that energy facilities in four Ukrainian regions had been attacked overnight, leaving tens of thousands of families without electricity. He accused Moscow of deliberately attempting to cause widespread power outages.
“America should see that Russia is not taking any reciprocal steps in response to sanctions relief or agreements,” Zelenskyy wrote, arguing that Moscow viewed opportunities to earn money as evidence that continuing the war was worthwhile.
He also stressed that the conflict was continuing because of Russia's invasion, not Ukraine's efforts to defend itself.
“It is Russia that must face pressure for peace to have a chance,” he said, thanking those supporting efforts to achieve peace.
Trump Yet to Decide on Further Sanctions
Trump said on Saturday that he had not yet decided whether to impose further sanctions on Russia, despite signing an executive order on Friday night waiving planned restrictions on national-interest grounds.
“We’ll figure it out, and you’ll figure it out,” Trump told reporters at a fundraising dinner at his Florida estate.
He described the decision as beneficial for the United States and potentially for the wider world, without providing further details.