Fire at Russia’s Ust-Luga Export Port After Drone Attack Disrupts Oil Flows
Drone Attack Sparks Fire and Disrupts Russian Oil Exports
Firefighting Efforts at Ust-Luga Port
Aug 14 (Reuters) - Firefighters were battling flames on Friday at Russia's Baltic Sea port Ust-Luga, a major energy exports hub, after a fire sparked by a drone attack, regional governor Aleksander Drozdenko said on messaging app Telegram.
Scale and Impact of Drone Attacks
Downed Drones and Regional Defense
More than fifty drones were downed in the Leningrad region, he added, as the region around Ust-Luga, a centre for exports of oil and oil products, kept up efforts to repel the attack.
Unclear Damage and Ongoing Tactics
The scale of damage was not immediately clear in the attack, which continues Ukraine's tactics of hitting Russian oil processing and export facilities and grain shipping routes, in an effort to deny revenue to Moscow and force it to end the war.
International Response and Security Measures
Latvia and Finland Respond to Drone Threats
On Friday, fighter jets shot down a drone that entered the airspace of Latvia, the armed forces of the NATO and European Union member said, while Finland temporarily restricted parts of the Baltic Sea, as a precaution against drone attacks.
Wider Impact on Russian Oil Infrastructure
Ukrainian Strikes on Russian Refineries
Ukraine has struck, sometimes repeatedly, more than a dozen major refineries in Russia, one of the world's largest oil producers, causing a widespread domestic fuel crisis.
Moscow's Defense Against Drone Attacks
Overnight Drone Incidents in the Russian Capital
The Russian capital of Moscow, home to another big oil processing plant, downed overnight more than a dozen drones heading towards it, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram on Friday.
(Reporting by Jekaterīna Golubkova in Tokyo; Editing by Tom Hogue and Clarence Fernandez)
