Ukraine-Russia War Latest: Russian Oil Depots Hit after Putin Launches Ballistic Missile Attack on Kyiv
By Arpan Rai
Three Russian tankers also hit, Zelensky says
Ukrainian forces have struck three oil depots and a fuel facility in Russia’s southern Stavropol region this morning, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
The Ukrainian president said three Russian “shadow fleet” tankers were also hit in the Black Sea.
It comes after a major Russian aerial assault on Kyiv and other cities on Sunday, which Ukrainian authorities said killed at least six people and injured 16 others.
The attack on Ukraine’s capital is believed to be the biggest ballistic missile attack of the war.
The Kyiv government said firefighters were responding to blazes in five different districts after the attack, one of the biggest in recent weeks, hit residential buildings, office and industrial sites, a dormitory and vehicles.
Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said the raid involved “around four dozen” ballistic missiles, the largest number in a single attack since the war began.
The attack on Kyiv comes a day after Ukrainian drone strikes killed at least nine people at warehouses belonging to a major Russian shopping website.
Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes targeted “significant logistical facilities”, accusing Wildberries of providing equipment for drones and navigation equipment for the Russian military.
KEY POINTS
- Oil tankers hit at key terminal off Russia’s coast
- Russia pounds Kyiv with major ballistic missile attack
- Russia fired more ballistic missiles against Ukraine in July than it produces monthly, says ISW
- Russia claims control of another village in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region
- Ukraine blames Russia for strike on Turkish cargo ship that killed five
Russia fired more ballistic missiles against Ukraine in July than it produces monthly, says ISW
Russian forces have launched more ballistic missiles against Ukraine thus far in July than Russia reportedly produces each month, according to a US-based think tank monitoring the war.
“Ukrainian defence source Militarnyi reported on 19 July that Russia used up to two-thirds of its planned annual production of Zirkon missiles in July 2026 alone and that Russia launched more ballistic missiles in July than Russia’s reported total monthly production volume,” the Institute for the Study of War said.
Citing the Ukrainian Air Force reports for July, ISW said the attacks indicate that Russia has launched 107 ballistic missiles and 20 Zirkon missiles against Ukraine in July thus far.
“Militarny cited unspecified Ukrainian military intelligence (GUR) reports indicating that Russia produces about 60 Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 40 missiles for the S-400 complex monthly. Russia appears to be dipping into its stockpiles to continue increasing the number of ballistic missiles it launches against Ukraine, as these missiles have a higher success rate than drones and cruise missiles,” it said.
“Russian forces have simultaneously decreased the number of drones they launch in each overnight package, launching 2,955 thus far in July 2026 compared to 5,749 in June 2026,” the ISW said.
Ukraine blames Russia for strike on Turkish cargo ship that killed 10
Ukrainian officials said a strike by Russian forces targeted an international cargo vessel in the Black Sea off the coast of Ukraine’s southern city of Odesa, killing at least 10 crew members.
The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship had left port loaded with corn and was carrying a crew of 17 sailors from India and Syria, in addition to one Ukrainian, said prime minister Sergii Koretskyi.
Eight crew members were rescued from the vessel — which was still burning late on Sunday — and five remain missing, he added.
“A civilian ship. An international crew. A route serving global food security. Putin saw another target,” Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on X.
“This attack leaves no room for illusions. Putin’s Russia does not care whom it kills,” he said.
A Reuters witness in Odesa saw smoke billowing from a large vessel off the coast.
Moscow has not publicly commented on Sunday’s strike.
Russia has stepped up attacks in recent weeks on deepwater ports in southern Ukraine that handle much of the country’s grain and other critical cargo in the fifth year of war.
Death toll from Russian strike on vessel near Odesa rises to 10
The death toll from a Russian strike on a vessel near Ukraine’s southern port city of Odesa has risen to 10, Ukraine’s seaports authority said this morning.
The Guinea-Bissau-flagged ship loaded with corn carrying a crew from India and Syria was struck late on Sunday, with Ukrainian officials reporting that eight crew members were rescued from the vessel.
New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon
Fresh footage has been released of the moment a Ukrainian property tycoon and two others were injured in a bomb attack in Monaco.
Tycoon Vadym Iermolaiev was left fighting for life after the explosion at the start of June, with a 13 year-old boy and a woman also injured in what authorities believe was an attempted assassination.
Ukraine’s prosecutor general Ruslan Kravchenko released footage of the incident as he reported an investigation was underway to obtain new evidence in the case of “attempted murder”.
The video showed a hooded figure appearing to drop a backpack full of explosives on the steps of Mr Iermolaiev’s Monaco home. As they walked away, the property tycoon could be seen walking towards the property with two others when a purple flash erupted as the explosion took place.
New video shows Monaco parcel bomb blast attack on Ukrainian tycoon
A Ukrainian woman suspected of being behind the bomb attack was found shot dead near Kyiv last week.
Drone attack on Moscow hits oil depot and logistics centre
Hundreds of Ukrainian drones have attacked Russia overnight, officials said as the strikes hit an oil depot and logistics centre, local media reports and Telegram media channels reported.
An attack in the city of Podolsk, nearly 40kms south of the Kremlin, was reportedly under attack. Photos and videos of the attack showed thick black smoke billowing from a strike on an oil depot.
Moscow mayor Sergei Sobhyanin said that more than 400 Ukrainian drones were launched towards the Russian capital. Of these, he said 85 drones were downed while approaching Moscow.
A fire was also reported at a residential building in the city of Domodedovo and a warehouse was destroyed at the Yuzhnye Vorota logistics park, reported The Kyiv Independent.
Zelensky confirms Russia’s energy sector under attack
Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Sunday that Ukrainian units struck more energy infrastructure in Russian territory.
He said units of Ukraine’s Security Service agency struck three oil depots in the Stavropol region, while a separate unit of the army hit another fuel-related facility in the same region.
Three Russian tankers were also struck in the Black Sea, he said.
Stavropol governor Vladimir Vladimirov earlier referenced Ukrainian drone attacks igniting fires at “industrial facilities” in two locations within the region.
He did not specify what the facilities were, but said nobody was hurt.
Russian news outlet Astra on Sunday reported that three oil depots may be burning in Stavropol, based on its analysis of photos and videos sent in by locals after the attack.
Russian air defence systems shot down 140 Ukrainian drones over eight Russian regions, annexed Crimea, and the Black and Azov seas overnight into Sunday, Russia’s defence ministry reported. It did not say how many were launched or reached their targets.
In Russia’s Kursk region near the Ukrainian border, Ukrainian drones struck four apartment buildings, setting off a fire and injuring one person, according to local governor Alexander Khinshtein.
Smoke rises from the grain carrier Golden Leo under the Guinea-Bissau flag after Russian missile strike in the Black Sea close to Odesa, Ukraine (AP)
Kyiv residents say Russian attacks taking a ‘psychological’ toll as ballistic missile strikes increase
Viktoria Shejko, 32, was taking shelter in the corridor of her apartment block with her seven children and husband when they heard the loud explosions.
“When the alarm started, we checked that there were ballistics, then went into the corridor. Then it started exploding one missile after another,” she said.
The strain of constant bombardment is “very difficult psychologically,” she said.
“It used to be once a week or even more rarely, but now if not every day, then every other day.”
Rescuers pulled four people from a burning home in the Sviatoshynskyi district, while in the Shevchenkivskyi district, they rushed to save residents from a three-story building on fire.
One person was found dead. Firefighters also responded to blazes in the Solomyanskyi, Desnianskyi and Dnipro districts.
Russia’s defence ministry claimed the attack on Kyiv targeted sites linked to the Ukrainian military — including plants producing Flamingo drones and parts for Neptune guided missiles, as well as a postal terminal used for storing dual-use goods and assembling drones, robotic systems and electronic warfare equipment.
A woman inspects her home after a Russian missile strike (Reuters)
Putin meets with North Korean foreign minister in latest high-level diplomacy
Russian president Vladimir Putin met with North Korea’s foreign minister and thanked Pyongyang for supporting his war against Ukraine, in the latest high-level diplomacy between the countries, Russian state media reported.
The visit by North Korean foreign minister Choe Son Hui comes without an obvious occasion, such as a multilateral diplomatic event or state anniversary, and has raised speculation that she may be coordinating a possible visit to Russia by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
North Korean state media said Choe departed for Russia on Saturday at the invitation of Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov but has yet to comment on the purpose of her visit.
Yoon Min Ho, spokesperson for South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which handles affairs related to North Korea, said Monday that Seoul was closely monitoring the meetings but declined to assess whether Moscow and Pyongyang were discussing another summit between their leaders.
Russia’s Tass news agency said Putin during his meeting with Choe at the Kremlin on Sunday praised the countries’ bilateral relations and reiterated his “gratitude to the North Korean leadership and people” for supporting his military operations against Ukraine.
Choe told Putin that Kim remains committed to the “comprehensive development” of relations with Russia, Tass said.
Vladimir Putin shakes hands with North Korean foreign minister Choe Son Hui during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow (Reuters)
What will be Andy Burnham’s foreign policy on Ukraine and Nato
The incoming prime minister Andy Burnham has little foreign policy experience, but has promised to continue the government’s Nato commitment and support for the UK’s nuclear deterrent.
He said Britain will remain a strong booster of Ukraine and a firm United States ally.
Relations with the US could depend on how he interacts with a capricious president Donald Trump, who initially gave Keir Starmer glowing reviews only to sour on him for not supporting his war with Iran.
Burnham has publicly criticised Trump in the past but has said he would deal with him respectfully, as he does with others, but would also be willing to disagree.
“I like to think I’ve got some personality myself and I’ll just, you know, I’ll deal with him very upfront in the same way,” he told Lineker.
“Where you disagree, do it, but do it in a way that is kind of meeting him where he’s at.”
Trump has pushed Nato members to significantly boost military spending, and Burnham will be under pressure to exceed the defense spending goals set out by Sir Keir.
