WarMay 21, 2026 7:26 am • 2 min readWhat purports to be the aftermath of a Ukrainian attack on the Syzran Oil Refinery in Russia's Samara Oblast overnight on on May 21, 2026. (Exilenova Plus/Telegram)Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.A Russian oil refinery in Syzran, Samara Oblast, was struck in a Ukrainian attack overnight on May 21, social media channels reported.Local residents reported that an oil refining unit at Rosneft's Syzran Oil Refinery was struck in the Ukrainian attack, according to independent Telegram news channel Exilenova Plus.The reports could not be immediately verified by the Kyiv Independent.Syzran, Samara Oblast's third largest city, is located about 700 kilometers (440 miles) northeast of Ukraine's border with Russia.Ukraine regularly strikes military infrastructure deep within Russia and the occupied territories in an effort to diminish Moscow's capacity to continue waging its war.Kyiv considers energy facilities to be valid military targets, as the energy sites provide fuel and funding for the Kremlin's war machine.All of central Russia's major oil refineries have completely halted or rolled back production following recent Ukrainian drone strikes, Reuters reported May 20.On May 18-19, Ukraine struck one of Russia's largest oil refineries and an oil pumping station, Ukraine's General Staff said, after Russian officials reported drone attacks in Yaroslavl Oblast and near Moscow.Ukrainian forces targeted the Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez oil refinery in Kstovo, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, the General Staff said, where a fire was recorded on the facility's territory on May 18.On May 20, Ukraine struck one of Russia's largest oil refineries near the town of Kstovo, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Ukraine's General Staff said — marking the second reported hit on the site within a week.An AVT-6 oil refining unit was hit, leading to a subsequent fire at the Lukoil-Nizhegorodorgsintez refinery, according to the General Staff.