Ukraine launches largest drone strike on Moscow in years; Zelensky calls refinery hit ‘justified’

Russia’s Defence Ministry said Ukraine had used hundreds of drones in a sustained overnight operation that ran into Thursday morning. The main target was the Moscow oil refinery, where firefighters battled blazes for hours and a thick plume of smoke drifted over the north of the city. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported debris falling at multiple sites and several people injured.

In a video address, President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed the strikes and described the refinery as "funding the war," arguing that the operation was a "justified response" to Russian attacks on Ukrainian targets. He repeated his line that "if Ukraine burns, Moscow burns too." The timing followed Kyiv’s appeals at the G7 for additional pressure from the Trump administration on Moscow.

Russian markets showed visible nervousness. The rouble closed slightly weaker against the dollar and the Moscow stock exchange opened lower, led down by energy names. European Union officials said the strikes represent an expanding front targeting energy infrastructure and that the matter would be raised at the NATO defence ministers’ meeting in Brussels.