Ukraine ‘halts’ Russian advance, sets fuel depots on fire

Oil tanks in Kstovo and Oryol catch fire after drone strikes

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday his troops halted the advance of Russian forces on the frontlines as attack drones set ablaze two fuel depots within Russia.

“Our command, our military has stopped the Russian advance in eastern Ukraine,” Zelensky told French broadcaster BFM TV.

In Kstovo, about 450 kilometers east of Moscow, a fuel and energy complex was attacked by drones, according to the regional governor.

“Now the special services are working on the spot, using all the necessary forces and means to localize the fire at one of the oil refining installations,” Gleb Nikitin said on messaging app Telegram.

“According to preliminary data, no victims.”

Earlier in Oryol, about 160 kilometers from the Ukrainian frontier, a drone crashed into a tank containing petroleum products and ignited a fire, according to the region’s governor.

“A fuel and energy complex facility was attacked. Special services are working on the spot to contain the fire. There were no casualties,” Andrey Klychkov wrote on the messaging app Telegram.

Local media reported the attack occurred at around 3 a.m. local time.

Ukrainian drones also attacked the Russian region of Belgorod, near the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, on Monday night, causing no injuries, according to that region’s governor.

“Belgorod region was attacked by the Ukrainian Armed Forces using UAVs, which dropped 4 explosive devices. There were no casualties as a result of the explosions, but there was damage to the power line,” Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram.

According to Gladkov, seven communities were without electricity as a result of the attack.

In addition, a drone was destroyed over the Tula region, south of Moscow, according to a regional security ministry quoted by the official TASS news agency.

The governor of the Kursk region, also close to the Ukrainian border, announced that two Ukrainian drones had been shot down by Russian defense forces.

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