Ukraine Launches Record Drone Attack on Moscow, Major Oil Refinery Blaze Reported

Ukraine launched its largest-ever drone assault on Moscow and its surroundings on June 18, causing fires at a key oil refinery and leading to temporary flight restrictions at Sheremetyevo International Airport, according to Russian officials and local media.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin stated on Telegram that air defense forces were actively repelling a massive attack, with several drones reaching the Moscow Oil Refinery. While Sobyanin did not specify damage to the facility, multiple Russian media outlets reported that the refinery had caught fire. The attack occurred as Russian President Vladimir Putin was preparing to host a meeting with Southeast Asian leaders in Kazan, about 700 kilometers east of Moscow.

Sheremetyevo Airport, the capital's busiest, announced it had evacuated passengers to safe areas and restricted flights during the intense assault. Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov confirmed that a drone crashed into an apartment building in the Zhukovsky district and that debris from a drone caused a fire at a shopping center near the capital's outskirts.

Russian state news agency TASS described the attack as the largest on Moscow in at least two years. The strike comes as diplomatic efforts to end the conflict, now in its fourth year, have stalled, and Ukraine has intensified its campaign of targeting oil refineries that underpin Russia's war economy. Unverified videos on social media showed thick black smoke rising over the city and drones flying overhead.