As a former St Petersburg taxi driver, Vladimir Putin knows the importance of keeping fuel costs low. And by hitting his hometown hard this weekend, Ukraine is increasing the literal and political costs of the war for the Russian President.
Ukrainian drone and missile strikes this weekend on a major oil depot and military base in Russia’s second city, where the President once served in the office of the mayor, are increasing pressure on Russia’s air defences and logistics and forcing Kremlin leaders into tough decisions about which parts of the country to defend.
The St Petersburg governor, Alexander Beglov, said the city had come under a “large-scale” drone attack but that there were no casualties at the oil facility. The attack comes just over a month after a Ukrainian strike on the city during a major economic forum designed to attract foreign investment.
The strike on Saturday on one of Russia’s biggest oil and energy facilities was part of the latest wave of Ukrainian attacks targeting Russia’s heartland. Alexander Drozdenko, governor of the Leningrad region that surrounds St Petersburg claimed 72 drones had been shot down over region on Saturday, while Kyiv said its forces had hit port facilities and military bases, including Kronstadt naval base – in the latest strikes.
