Ukraine Outpaces Russia in Drone Attacks; Oil Port Strikes Slash Russian Revenue

Ukraine launched more cross-border attack drones than Russia for the first time since the war began.

“Ukrainian drones have struck Russia’s Baltic Sea port of Primorsk and the NORSI oil refinery in the central Nizhny Novgorod region, according to Ukrainian drone forces commander Robert Brovdi”

Al Jazeera

Russia’s defense ministry said it shot down 7,347 Ukrainian drones during March, the highest monthly total they have reported.

Al Jazeera

Ukraine said it came under attack from 6,462 Russian drones and 138 missiles.

The battle of long-range strikes has become one of the most important fronts of the war.

Ukraine's strikes zeroed in on Russia’s energy lifelines, hitting Primorsk and Ust-Luga.

These ports account for over 40 percent of Russia's seaborne oil export capacity.

The Independent

Russia lost about $970 million in revenue in a single week as a result.

The attacks contributed to outages of the OKKO retail fuel network across western Russia.

The strikes ignited political backlash within Russia as the attacks hit closer to home.

“Ukrainian drone attacks have damaged an oil refinery in the Nizhny Novgorod region and oil transportation infrastructure near the Baltic Sea port of Primorsk, regional authorities said Sunday”

The Moscow Times

Putin convened an emergency meeting of energy producers.

Peskov admitted they could not ensure 100% protection of energy facilities.

The strikes on oil infrastructure were just one facet of a weeklong surge in attacks.

Russian forces hit northern Ukraine’s Chernihiv region causing a large-scale power blackout.

The Times of India

The cycle of retaliatory bombardment continued as Ukraine expanded its offensive reach.