Ukraine expands medium-range drone strikes, hitting Russian oil facilities and air defenses

Ukraine launched a large drone barrage against Moscow on Thursday, striking a major oil refinery and igniting a sizable explosion. The operation is part of a broader shift toward medium-range "middle strikes" – drones operating between 30 km and 180 km from the front – aimed at Russian air-defence assets, communications, logistics and oil facilities.

Ukrainian officials say the focus on these targets has disrupted Russian battlefield advances and forced the redeployment of air-defence systems away from the front. Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, said the role of middle strikes is now decisive, with some drones capable of flying up to 2,000 km. He added that manual control improves precision, allowing as few as three drones to destroy a single target.

Field commander "Kusto" of the 414th Separate Unmanned Systems Brigade reported that his unit primarily attacks targets up to 100 km from the contact line, including Buk, Tor and Pantsir air-defence systems, large military vehicles and logistics hubs. The most frequently used drones are the domestically produced Chaklun V and the B-2, which typically launch from about 150 km away before searching for targets.

Ukrainian forces claim to have destroyed at least 129 air-defence systems in Russian-occupied areas this year, though the figure cannot be independently verified. Recent strikes have hit the Ryazan refinery, the Tuapse port facilities and forced the suspension of operations at the NORSI refinery in Perm, Russia’s fourth-largest oil processing plant.

Analysts note that while such attacks alone are unlikely to reverse the war’s outcome, they are stretching Russian logistics and complicating command and control. Justin Bronk of the Royal United Services Institute said the increased depth of Ukrainian strikes forces Russia to disperse its air-defences, opening opportunities for further mid-range attacks on ammunition depots, fuel stores and command points.

The United States-based Institute for the Study of War observed that Russian battlefield advances have slowed since October, partly due to these middle strikes and also because of fortified positions and terrain. Communication challenges have been exacerbated after restrictions on the Starlink satellite service.

Ukraine’s rapid development of its drone capability reflects close feedback loops between frontline units and domestic manufacturers. Engineers report that newer platforms are delivered almost combat-ready, reducing the need for additional programming and allowing systematic integration of middle-strike operations into Ukrainian tactics.