A Ukrainian drone strike has hit Moscow’s largest oil refinery, triggering a fire at a critical energy facility just 15 kilometres from the Kremlin in the latest blow to Russia’s wartime infrastructure.
The attack on the Moscow Oil Refinery in the Kapotnya district was confirmed by Ukrainian officials and Russian sources on social media, with footage appearing to show flames and emergency crews responding at the site.
Andrii Kovalenko, head of the National Security and Defense Council’s Centre for Countering Disinformation, said the strike demonstrated that even heavily defended areas around the Russian capital were vulnerable.
Moscow is under attack; the Moscow oil refinery is on fire,” he said.
“Although Putin has pulled virtually all key air defence and missile defence systems to Moscow, this does not save the Russians.”
The refinery is one of Russia’s most strategically important energy sites, supplying a major share of fuel used across the capital region.
It provides around 35pc of Moscow’s fuel market, including approximately 40pc of gasoline supplies and half of diesel fuel demand in the surrounding area, while also supporting aviation fuel supplies for Moscow’s airports.
Close-up video showing the aftermath of the attack on the Moscow refinery.
Meanwhile, traffic in Moscow's Kapotnya district was blocked following the attack. Additionally, Moscow Mayor Sobyanin stated that the attack on Moscow on June 16 was one of the largest since the… https://t.co/wPSZg4Jndz pic.twitter.com/TxiGaSSzae
— Jürgen Nauditt 🇩🇪🇺🇦 (@jurgen_nauditt) June 16, 2026
Any prolonged disruption could put additional pressure on Russia’s domestic fuel network, already under strain from repeated Ukrainian strikes against energy infrastructure.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said the Russian capital had come under a large-scale drone attack, claiming around 60 drones had been intercepted.
Emergency crews were dispatched to multiple locations where debris from downed drones reportedly fell.
However, the mayor later acknowledged that the Moscow Oil Refinery itself had suffered damage after being hit.
The strike marks one of the closest attacks on Moscow’s energy infrastructure since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, striking at a facility that sits within the protective shield of Russia’s political heartland.
The attack came despite the Kremlin’s efforts to reinforce air defences around Moscow, where Russia has concentrated some of its most advanced missile and anti-drone systems.
Ukrainian officials have increasingly targeted Russian oil infrastructure as part of a campaign aimed at disrupting fuel supplies, logistics and the financial networks supporting Moscow’s war effort.
The refinery attack followed another drone strike on an oil depot in Krasnodar Krai, where a facility in the village of Poltavskaya was hit.
The depot serves as a logistics hub linking Lukoil refineries with regional fuel distribution networks.
The latest attacks underline a growing shift in the conflict, with Ukraine seeking to take the fight deeper into Russian territory and expose vulnerabilities far beyond the front line.
For Moscow, the strikes pose an uncomfortable question: despite billions spent on protecting the capital, how secure is Russia’s most important city from long-range drone warfare?
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