Get your news delivered straight to you by 7am - sign up to our new Morning Mail newsletter for FREE See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy ELIZABETH HAIGH, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 16:55 BST, 30 May 2026 | Updated: 16:56 BST, 30 May 2026
Ukraine's President Zelensky has celebrated successful drone strikes deep in Russian territory overnight against aircraft, missiles and oil targets.Drones caused fires at Putin's oil facilities overnight into Saturday, Ukrainian officials said, in what appeared to be the latest attack on Moscow's vital industry.Authorities in the Rostov region said falling drone debris sparked a fire that damaged an oil depot and tanker in the port of Taganrog, while officials in the neighbouring Krasnodar region reported a fire breaking out at an oil depot in Armavir.'Another facility of Russia's oil industry has been reached - Armavir,' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X on Saturday of the attack in the Krasnodar region, noting that Armavir is '500 kilometres from our state border'.'We are rightfully bringing the war back to where it came from,' he added.It was also reported on Saturday that Ukrainian drones had destroyed two Russian Tu-142 naval aircraft and an Iskander ballistic missile system.They were attacked at a military airfield in Taganrog, a port city on the Sea of Azov in Rostov Oblast, Unmanned Systems Forces commander Robert Brovdi said.The Tu-142 aircraft is a specialist reconnaissance anti-submarine unit, while the Iskander missile system is capable of launching ballistic warheads up to 500km. Drones caused fires at Putin's oil facilities overnight into Saturday, Ukrainian officials said, in what appeared to be the latest attack on Moscow's vital industry Footage posted to social media by Ukrainian authorities showed the aftermath of the strikesRostov regional governor Yury Slyusar said on Telegram that fires on the tanker and in the port of Taganrog - a city of about 240,000 - had been extinguished, and two people were injured.Mayor Svetlana Kambulova said a local state of emergency, introduced on May 27, had been extended. Russia's Defence Ministry said that its forces had downed 127 drones overnight.In the neighbouring Krasnodar region, authorities in Armavir, which has a population of 185,000, said a fire at an oil depot in the city's industrial zone had been brought under control and that there were no injuries.Slyusar said that almost 50 drones had been downed in his region, with attacks reported across the province, which borders Ukraine's Donbas, the focus of fighting between Russia and Ukraine.Ukraine has recently expanded its mid- and long-range strike capabilities, deploying drone and missile technology that it has developed domestically to battle Russia's four-year invasion.Attacks on Russian oil assets that play a key part in funding the invasion have become almost daily occurrences.For its part, Russia has used its long-range ballistic missiles to damage Ukraine's power grid and cities.It comes as the Ukrainian capital is bracing for further heavy bombardments after what the Russian Foreign Ministry said earlier this week would be upcoming 'systemic strikes' on Kyiv. Authorities in the Rostov region said falling drone debris sparked a fire that damaged an oil depot and tanker in the port of Taganrog Ukraine's drones also targeted aircraft and missile weaponry, authorities saidAfter a Russian drone struck an apartment block in eastern Romania this week, injuring two people, Zelensky again warned of the expected attack as he warned that the issue 'concerns both the United States and Europe'.The incursion added to concerns that the war could spread across the alliance's borders, and drew strong condemnation across Europe. The Ukrainian president had earlier said on Thursday that he is being 'very persistent' in pressing the United States to provide his country with more Patriot air defence missiles that can counter devastating Russian ballistic missile attacks.He added: 'We have intel indicating that Russia is preparing a new massive attack. Please pay attention to air raid alerts and stay safe. 'Air defense and the continued need to help Ukraine protect its skies are our key priorities. I am grateful to every partner, every leader, and every country that is ready to help and that implements our arrangements in full.'Moscow claimed it was too soon to ascertain whether the drone which hit the building in Romania was Russian and attempted to blame Ukraine.
