Ukrainian drones set a Russian refinery ablaze as Putin admits a 'difficult period'

Ukraine kept up its campaign against Russia's oil industry on Sunday, setting fire to a refinery in southern Russia in a strike that authorities said killed at least two people. The attack came as President Vladimir Putin publicly acknowledged that Russia's economy is passing through a 'difficult period'.

James Whitmore June 28, 2026 at 6:05 PM

A Ukrainian drone strike ignited a fire at a major Russian oil refinery on Sunday, the latest in an intensifying campaign aimed at the fuel industry that helps finance Moscow's war, PBS reported.

The strike

Falling debris from downed Ukrainian drones sparked a blaze at the refinery in Slavyansk-na-Kubani, a town in Russia's southern Krasnodar region east of occupied Crimea, the regional governor, Veniamin Kondratyev, said, according to PBS. At least two people were killed, Russian authorities said. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky also said a second refinery, in the Yaroslavl region around 700 kilometers (435 miles) from the border, had been struck during the overnight attacks. As with most battlefield claims, the details could not be independently verified.

A war on Russia's fuel economy

The attack fits a pattern. Ukraine has sharply stepped up long-range drone strikes on Russian refineries and energy and military sites in recent months, seeking to cut Moscow's oil revenue and disrupt the fuel that supplies its forces. Western analysts say the campaign has squeezed Russian fuel supplies and, at times, slowed operations on the front line. Russia, for its part, has continued its own large-scale drone and missile barrages against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure, and each side accuses the other of targeting civilians.

Putin's acknowledgment

Speaking on Sunday, Putin conceded that Russia was "going through a difficult period," but insisted the government would "honor all its social obligations" to citizens. He said authorities were "adjusting certain plans in light of the current situation," while maintaining that "all strategically important development programs will undoubtedly be implemented in full." The comments were a rare public acknowledgment of strain on an economy weighed down by Western sanctions, heavy military spending and pressure on oil earnings — even as the Kremlin projects confidence about its long-term course.

No end in sight

The exchanges came against a backdrop of stalled diplomacy. Zelensky has pressed for direct talks with Putin, who has dismissed the idea, and the two sides remain far apart on terms — Moscow has demanded sweeping territorial concessions that Kyiv rejects. With neither willing to halt its strikes, the war grinds on into the second half of 2026, its costs mounting on both sides and its battle and casualty figures, as ever, difficult to confirm.