Ukrainian drones attacked energy and military sites in St. Petersburg ahead of a major economic forum in the city and a day after Moscow killed 23 people across Ukraine in devastating air attacks."Important facilities on Russian territory were hit last night," President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on June 3, adding that what he called Ukraine's "long-range sanctions" against Russia reached an area about 1,100 kilometers from the state border.Zelenskyy said Kyiv's latest attack targeted an oil depot in St. Petersburg, a "facility of Russia's oil industry that serves the war effort," the Kronstadt naval base, and a military site in Russia's Tambov region.
The attack comes as Ukraine has stepped up strikes on energy and military targets deep inside Russia, hampering the country's ability to profit from sharp increases in oil prices resulting from the US-Israeli war with Iran.Local Russian authorities confirmed that Ukrainian drones targeted the country, saying dozens were downed by Russian forces and reporting damage to civilian infrastructure, although they avoided mentioning strikes on energy and military sites.Zelenskyy posted videos showing drones targeting the facilities, with fires burning and pillars of smoke rising into the sky above the Leningrad region, a key distant area that has unexpectedly become a frequent target of Ukrainian attacks in 2026.Similar footage was widely shared across Ukrainian and Russian Telegram channels.St. Petersburg's Economic Forum Set To Kick OffThe latest Ukrainian attack on St. Petersburg coincided with the start of Russia's main economic event of the year intended to attract foreign investment into the country -- the 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.Waking up to drone strikes, Russia's second-largest city and the hometown of President Vladimir Putin, is now set to host its fifth such forum during the country's ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine.The forum is annually attended by Putin and has long served as one of his most prominent platforms, with leaders from post-Soviet countries making up much of the guest list.
