President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian long-range strikes have sharply reduced Russian oil refining in recent months, forcing Moscow to shut down oil wells and pushing its state budget deeper into deficit.
In his evening address, President Zelensky said Kyiv is expanding its deep-strike campaign against targets linked to Russia’s war machine, framing the operations as a justified response to Moscow’s attacks on Ukrainian cities.
President highlighted the growing scale of Ukraine’s long-range drone program, saying strikes that once would have been considered exceptional have now become routine.
“There was a time when dozens of Ukrainian drones striking Russia was a big deal. Now, hundreds of our long-range sanctions every day are no longer a sensation,” Zelensky said.
Citing a Ukrainian intelligence assessment, the president said Russian oil refining has fallen by 10 percent in recent months. He said Russian oil companies have been forced to shut down oil wells, which he described as particularly damaging for Russia’s energy sector.