KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian forces launched overnight strikes against a massive natural gas processing facility and two military satellite communications centers inside Russia, Ukraine’s General Staff announced Wednesday.
The attacks are part of an ongoing aerial campaign targeting Russia’s energy infrastructure and defense industries, which has been ramping up as Ukraine develops more advanced long-range weapons in its fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion, now stretching into its fifth year.
The overnight operation hit the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant, which is part of a larger complex that also contains Russia’s only helium production facility, the General Staff announced via the Telegram messaging platform. The strike ignited a fire at the complex, according to the statement.
Orenburg sits more than 1,200 kilometers — roughly 750 miles — behind the front lines currently running through eastern and southern Ukraine.
According to the General Staff, the plant ranks among the largest gas processing facilities in the world. It produces helium, which is used in liquid-fuel rocket engines and guidance systems, as well as ethane, an essential ingredient in making solid rocket fuel and gunpowder, among other products.
The General Staff’s claims could not be independently confirmed, and Russian officials had not publicly responded as of Wednesday.
Ukraine’s military did not specify whether drones or missiles were used in the assault, though drones have been the weapon of choice in recent strikes on Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The same overnight operation also targeted two satellite communication hubs used by Russia’s military. One was the Dubna Space Communications Center near Moscow — described by the General Staff as the largest ground-based satellite facility in Russia — and the other was located in the Vladimir region, east of the Russian capital.
Ukraine has also been stepping up attacks on Crimea, aiming to sever the strategically important Russian-controlled peninsula. Overnight drone strikes knocked out power in Sevastopol, according to Mikhail Razvozhayev, the city’s Moscow-appointed governor, who made the announcement Wednesday.
Kyiv’s strategy in Crimea involves disrupting Russian military supply lines and hitting the peninsula’s power grid during the peak summer tourist season. Western analysts say Ukraine hopes the campaign will embarrass Russian President Vladimir Putin and fuel public pressure on him to bring the war to an end.
Crimea holds significant strategic value due to its location on the Black Sea, housing naval bases and serving as a key supply corridor for Russian forces operating inside Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Security Service also reported Wednesday that it struck two military airfields and destroyed missile systems in Crimea.
Russia’s Defense Ministry stated that Russian forces shot down 323 Ukrainian drones overnight. Ukraine’s air force, meanwhile, reported that Russia launched 101 long-range attack drones during the same period.
