Ukrainian drone strike sparks fire at Russian Baltic Sea port

Alexander Drozdenko, governor of Russia’s Leningrad region, said in a Telegram post on Wednesday that a drone attack had sparked a fire at the Ust-Luga port area on the Baltic Sea in northwest Russia, injuring three workers.

Ukraine later claimed responsibility for the strike on the port, which caused a fire and damaged part of the fuel tank network.

The Ukrainian General Staff said on Telegram: “According to preliminary information, the tank network was severely damaged by drone raids on the port’s oil infrastructure,” noting that five tanks were affected.

Drozdenko said a power station was shut down as a result of the attack, during which 150 drones were reportedly downed over the Leningrad region, which also hosts a major oil refinery and the city of St. Petersburg, the birthplace of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ust-Luga is a key export hub for oil, petroleum products, grain, and other goods.

Officials said NATO scrambled fighter jets overnight after at least four drones entered the airspace of Baltic states during the Ukrainian strikes on Russia, prompting brief shelter alerts for residents in Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.