Ukraine strikes oil terminals near St. Petersburg in Russia

Ukrainian drones on Saturday struck Russian oil facilities on the Baltic Sea nearSt. Petersburg, according to the local governor.

St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov said Russia's second-largest city had come under a "large-scale" drone attack, but there were no casualties.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed Ukraine carried out the attacks, saying It was intended to disrupt Russian energy revenues amid Moscow's war in Ukraine. 

"Ukraine's defense forces struck port oil infrastructure that generates revenue for Russia's war, and also hit Kronstadt, an important military target more than 850 km (528 miles) from Ukraine's state border," he wrote on social media.

Broader wave of attacks across Russian 

The attack comes weeks after Ukraine targeted St. Petersburg on the opening day of an annual economic conference where Russian President Vladimir Putin was speaking.

On Saturday, Alexander Drozdenko — the governor of the Leningrad region that surrounds the federal city of St. Petersburg — said drones had also struck the port of Vysotsk, about 170 km (105 miles) northwest of St. Petersburg on the Gulf of Finland, a facility that handles oil, grain, coal, and liquefied natural gas.

He added that 72 drones had been shot down over the Leningrad region.

The Russian Defense Ministry said 389 Ukrainian combat drones had been intercepted overnight across the country.

Finland's public broadcaster Yle reported that the country imposed temporary aviation and maritime restrictions in the eastern Gulf of Finland due to the Ukrainian drone attacks.

Russian says its forces captured Kostiantynivka in Ukraine

Russia said its forces have taken control of the eastern Ukrainian city of Kostiantynivka, a key target in the Donetsk region.

Putin called the move a strategic achievement.

"We all know that this city is a key transport and large industrial centre of Donbas," Putin said.

Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov described the advance as part of a wider effort to secure all of Donetsk.

Ukraine has not yet publicly responded to the claim of control over Kostiantynivka.

Edited by: Saim Dušan Inayatullah

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