Ukraine Drones Hit Russia Oil Plants   07/09 06:22

   Ukrainian drones on Thursday hit more Russian oil facilities and set two oil 
tankers ablaze in the Sea of Azov, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump 
pledged to grant Ukraine a license to manufacture the Patriot air defense 
systems.

   KYIV, Ukraine (AP) -- Ukrainian drones on Thursday hit more Russian oil 
facilities and set two oil tankers ablaze in the Sea of Azov, a day after U.S. 
President Donald Trump pledged to grant Ukraine a license to manufacture the 
Patriot air defense systems.

   Ukraine's strikes on oil refineries and other infrastructure across Russia 
has triggered a widespread fuel crisis with gasoline shortages and fuel 
rationing reported in multiple regions and drivers waiting for hours to fill 
their tanks.

   The acting governor of Russia's western Tver region, Vitaly Korolyov, said a 
Ukrainian drone strike triggered a fire at an oil depot in the city of Tver.

   In the southern region of Stavropol, Gov. Vladimir Vladimirov said oil 
reservoirs has been set ablaze by Ukrainian drones in Vyazniki. He said the 
authorities ordered the evacuation of residents of several apartment buildings 
near the facility as the fire expanded.

   In the Sea of Azov, Ukrainian drones set two oil tankers ablaze, according 
to Rostov Gov. Yuri Slusar, who said that one of the ships was still burning 
and the crews were evacuated. The attack was the latest in a series of strikes 
on oil tankers in the area in recent days, part of Ukraine efforts to cut fuel 
supplies to Russia-occupied Crimea.

   Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that in addition to strikes on 
oil facilities in Stavropol and Tver, Ukrainian defense forces also hit a 
reserve fuel storage facility about 800 kilometers (500 miles) from the front 
line, and an oil-pumping station in Ufa nearly 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) 
from Ukraine's border. He said they also struck an oil-loading terminal in the 
Rostov region about 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the front line, but it was 
not clear if that was the same strike described by Slusar.

   Zelenskyy described the strikes as part of Kyiv's campaign of "long-range 
sanctions" carried out in response to Russian attacks and Moscow's refusal to 
end the war. "We have long proposed that Russia end this war, and every day of 
delay should bring the feeling of war to where it all began -- to Russia," 
Zelenskyy said.

   Russia's Defense Ministry said that air defenses downed 73 Ukrainian drones 
from late Wednesday until early Thursday.

   Ukraine's Air Force said that Russia fired 94 long-range strike drones and 
two ballistic missiles at Ukraine last night. While 72 drones were jammed or 
intercepted, 19 drones and both missiles inflicted damages at 13 locations, it 
said.

   During Wednesday's meeting with Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO 
summit in Turkey, Trump said the U.S. will give Ukraine a license to make 
Patriot air defense systems to counter missile attacks from Russia in their 
more than four-year war, a huge coup for Kyiv which has long requested the 
technology.

   The tone of their meeting was a markedly different from an earlier, 
acrimonious encounter at the White House in February 2025 when Trump berated 
Zelenskyy. On Wednesday, he praised the Ukrainian leader's willingness to reach 
a deal to ending the war, saying he has "done an amazing job" and "been very 
effective."