Ukraine escalates conflict with strategic strikes on Russian oil pipeline

According to a statement by the Ukrainian State Security Service, on the night of April 5th, in the Russian Rostov region, a pipeline exploded. The pipeline reportedly transported oil products from a local oil depot to tankers at a port on the Azov Sea.

"The loading of tankers with oil products has been indefinitely suspended" - the Ukrainian intelligence assessed.

"The facility was utilized by the aggressor state for military purposes, to support its genocidal war against Ukraine," assessed the GUR in a statement. Social media has circulated a video of the incident. It shows the attack at night, with an explosion lighting up the distance and a loud bang in the background.

For the past two months, Ukraine has ramped up drone attacks on major Russian oil refineries, along with terminals, warehouses, and storage facilities.

Helima Croft, a former CIA analyst, recently pointed out that Ukraine has demonstrated it can target most of the oil infrastructure in western Russia, jeopardising about 60% of Russian exports.

The Financial Times, citing three anonymous sources, reported that the United States has urged Ukraine to cease attacks on Russian infrastructure, as such actions could elevate global oil prices and lead to retaliation. These advisories were purportedly relayed from Washington to senior officials of the SBU and Ukrainian defence intelligence.

Responding to these reports, Deputy Prime Minister Olga Stefanyszyn stated that Russian oil refineries are legitimate military targets. “We are operating in line with NATO's highest standards,” she asserted. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the president's office head, dismissed the Financial Times' information as "fictional".

The head of the Ukrainian Security Service, Vasyl Malyuk, mentioned that operations targeting Russian oil refineries have reduced Russia's oil production and refining activities by 12%.

Source: GRU, Financial Times, CNN