Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy ordered preemptive attacks on Russian energy facilities supporting its war effort, expanding drone strikes deep into Russian territory and Crimea since June 24, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Zelenskiy said, "I instructed our intelligence services and military to act preemptively against facilities Russia uses to expand its war effort" [1].

The attacks have targeted oil refineries, fuel terminals, power plants, and communication centers more than 1,200 kilometers behind front lines, including in Krasnodar and Ufa regions inside Russia [3, 5]. Ukrainian drone strikes caused power outages in Sevastopol, the largest city in Russian-annexed Crimea [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].

The Moscow oil refinery, Russia’s largest fuel supplier for the capital, suffered extensive damage and will be offline for at least six months [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Ukraine’s General Staff estimates that over 30% of Russian oil refining capacity is offline due to these attacks this month [7, 8, 5]. This has forced multiple Russian refineries to suspend operations temporarily for maintenance, according to reports [4, 7, 8, 5]. Moscow has imposed fuel sale restrictions across regions including Saratov, Tver, Omsk, Voronezh, Crimea, Tatarstan, and Tyumen in response to shortages [4, 7, 8, 5].

Russian official data show petroleum product and coke production dropped by 13.5% year-on-year in May 2026, a sharper decline linked to recent attacks [1, 2, 3, 6]. Russian air defenses said they shot down 323 Ukrainian drones overnight on June 24-25, though some strikes caused damage and casualties [4]. Three people died in Horlivka, Ukraine, and another in Belgorod, Russia, due to drone attacks, while one was killed by Russian shelling in Balakliia [4].

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure "to disrupt Russia's energy sector and tourism" and ordered government agencies to minimize the impact of strikes [9, 7, 8]. Putin said Western countries avoid direct attacks on Russia out of fear of retaliation but support Ukraine’s expanded drone operations [9].

Russian forces continue operations near Kostiantynivka in eastern Ukraine, with much of the city under Russian control but some contested areas remaining [9].

On June 25, Zelenskiy issued an evening address announcing further preemptive strikes and stating that Ukrainian forces had hit Russian communication centers and energy targets throughout the country, confirming the Moscow refinery offline for at least six months [1, 3, 5, 6].