Ukrainian military intelligence announced on Saturday that its forces successfully targeted an essential fuel pipeline in the Moscow region that supplies the Russian military. This operation, reported to have taken place late Friday, resulted in significant damage to Russian logistics capabilities, marking a substantial blow during an ongoing series of drone and missile strikes by Russia on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
The targeted pipeline, known as the Koltsevoy pipeline, is approximately 250 miles long and is crucial for transporting gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel from refineries in Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, and Moscow to the Russian army. According to the Ukrainian military intelligence agency, HUR, all three fuel lines of the pipeline were destroyed during the operation, which had the potential to transport up to 3 million tons of jet fuel, 2.8 million tons of diesel, and 1.6 million tons of gasoline annually.
Kyrylo Budanov, the head of HUR, remarked that the impact of these strikes surpasses that of the international sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
As concurrently reported, Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed to have thwarted a Ukrainian special forces team attempting to bolster defenses in Pokrovsk, a critical city on the eastern front. The Ministry released videos showing two alleged Ukrainian soldiers who surrendered, speaking of intense fighting and pressures from advancing Russian troops. However, the authenticity of these videos remains unverified, and Kyiv has not yet responded to these claims.
Both Russia and Ukraine have been presenting conflicting narratives regarding the situation in Pokrovsk. While President Vladimir Putin has suggested that his forces have surrounded Ukrainian defenders there, Ukrainian Army Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi asserted that while the situation remains challenging, there is no blockade or encirclement as claimed by Moscow. He emphasized that a comprehensive operation is in progress to drive out enemy forces.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed on Friday that some Russian units had infiltrated Pokrovsk, but reassured that Ukrainian forces are actively combating and expelling them. He noted that Russia has deployed approximately 170,000 troops in Donetsk in an effort to secure a significant battlefield victory.
In the wider context of the conflict, which continues to escalate, one civilian was killed and 19 were injured in the Mykolaiv region due to a Russian missile strike. Early Saturday morning also saw strikes on a gas plant in the Poltava region, further contributing to the existing energy crisis in Ukraine. Over the recent days, Russia has launched numerous drone attacks, with Ukrainian air defenses successfully intercepting the majority. However, incidents of damage and casualties continue to emerge in various regions across Ukraine.
Amidst these occurrences, there were reports of large-scale power outages in both Ukrainian and Russian cities, further highlighting the collateral impact of this ongoing conflict on civilians. As the situation develops, it remains crucial to monitor both military actions and their repercussions on the populations involved.