Editor’s note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Ukrainian drones struck the Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga in western Russia’s Leningrad Oblast on the night of November 11, monitoring channels reported.
The site, located near the border between Russia and Estonia, was set on fire, where explosions also broke out, according to Ukrainian monitoring channel Exilenova Plus.
Explosions rang out in other Russian regions as drones moved across the country.
A residential building was damaged in Russia’s Smolensk oblast in a Ukrainian drone attack, and air defenses were engaged in the city of Tver, the channel reported.
In the Republic of Adygea, explosions were heard and a fire was reported on the roof of a residential building after electronic warfare systems were reportedly activated, according to Exilenova Plus.
The Ust-Luga port has been sanctioned by the European Union, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States and Switzerland for its role in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Ust-Luga is one of the Russian ports “used to transport Russian crude oil using the ghost fleet and other irregular and high-risk transport practices”, according to the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Enlargement and Eastern Neighborhood.
Russia’s shadow fleet aims to circumvent pre-existing sanctions, often using ships flying false flags or registered abroad to export oil.
On October 12, the French navy intercepted and boarded an oil tanker suspected of flying a false flag within the ghost fleet, French President Emmanuel Macron said.
The reported attack on Ust-Luga does not mark the first time that Ukrainian forces have targeted port infrastructure.
Early on September 1, Ukrainian drones struck the Novatek-Ust-Luga complex, damaging key components of an oil processing unit and other technological equipment, causing a major fire at the facility, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency confirmed.
Gn world
