Record Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow targets refinery

Bloomberg News on Jun 18, 2026

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Russia’s capital faced a record air bombardment overnight, with drones reaching the Moscow Oil Refinery, disrupting airport operations and forcing the closure of several major roads in and around the city.

At least 194 drones were downed over Moscow, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram. Some drones reached the refinery, a key supplier of road fuel to the capital and the surrounding areas, Sobyanin said, without elaborating.

Operations were suspended at all four of Moscow’s passenger airports, Interfax reported, citing Russia’s air transport agency. The largest hub, Sheremetyevo, had to evacuate passengers into shelters and delay multiple flights, according to its Telegram channel. All airports later resumed services.

Moscow’s law-enforcement agencies closed traffic at several key highways for security reasons, state-run Tass news service reported.

The assault on the capital is the second so far this week, after a strike Tuesday previously set the refinery ablaze. Ukraine has stepped up drone attacks in an effort to bring the Kremlin to the negotiating table. Russian President Vladimir Putin has also intensified strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

“This is a fully justified response to Russian attacks on our cities and communities,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday in a post on X that included footage of the refinery on fire. “It is time the war ended, and Russia must take the necessary steps in diplomacy.”

Moscow regional governor Andrey Vorobiev said 16 people were injured across the region overnight, based on current information.

Units on fire

The latest assault caused fires at the refinery’s storage facility, a combined oil-processing unit and a secondary processing unit, Ukraine’s General Staff said on Telegram. Bloomberg couldn’t independently verify the information.

Gazprom Neft PJSC, which owns the plant, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Air defenses downed 555 Ukrainian drones overnight in 17 Russian regions, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said on Telegram. Russian-occupied Crimea was also attacked.

The bombardment took place as Putin hosts leaders from the Association of South East Asian Nations at a summit in Kazan, about 800 kilometers (500 miles) east of Moscow. It’s the first Russia-Asean meeting since the president’s forces invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Ukraine was also attacked overnight. Its Air Defense said it shot down four of seven ballistic missiles fired by Russia and 212 of 239 drones, mostly targeting Kyiv and the cities of Poltava, Chernihiv and Sumy.

On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said his attention is returning to Russia and Ukraine after the conclusion of a deal with Iran, following several efforts to mediate a peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv.