(KYIV) – Ukrainian drone strikes hit two Russian oil refineries overnight, with one attack producing a massive mushroom cloud visible from hundreds of kilometres away, as Russian forces killed at least ten civilians across Ukraine including a fourteen-year-old boy in central Kyiv.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence confirmed strikes on the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez refinery in Perm, approximately 1,500 kilometres east of Ukraine, and the Novoshakhtinsk refinery in Rostov Oblast near the Ukrainian border. Footage published by Ukrainian monitoring channels showed a spectacular fire at the Perm facility, one of Russia’s ten largest oil refineries with annual processing capacity exceeding 13 million metric tonnes. Perm Governor Dmitry Makhonin confirmed a “massive UAV attack” on an industrial facility without providing further details.
The Novoshakhtinsk facility, the only oil refinery in Rostov Oblast, suspended operations following the strike, according to regional Governor Yuri Slyusar. Ukrainian forces also struck the Iskra defence plant in Ulyanovsk and reported destroying two radar stations in Rostov region.
Russia’s defence ministry claimed air defences intercepted forty Ukrainian drones across several regions including occupied Crimea. However, fires were reported at an oil depot in Krasnodar Krai, approximately 100 kilometres east of the Kerch Bridge, with Russian news agency TASS later confirming a facility fire caused by falling drone debris.
Civilian Casualties Mount
Russian attacks killed ten people and injured sixty-one across Ukraine over the past day, with most fatalities occurring in the Kharkiv region. Three Russian Kh-8000 cruise missiles targeted a farm in the region, with one missile striking a vegetable storage barn where workers were sorting produce, killing six workers.
In Kyiv, a Russian drone struck a sixteen-storey residential building in the Pecherskyi district during daytime hours, killing a fourteen-year-old boy and injuring at least twenty others. President Volodymyr Zelensky described the attack as “absolutely savage and sickening” and “devoid of any military logic”.
“There was no alarm, just a muffled explosion,” said Jana, a resident of the struck building, speaking to the Kyiv Independent. “We try to put it out of our minds and stay composed, but lately our morale has taken a hit.”
Additional Russian attacks were reported in Kyiv’s Solomianskyi and Podilskyi districts. One person was killed in Odesa in a double-tap strike on a postal facility, while a medical clinic in Zaporizhzhia was hit while people were inside.
Air Defence Developments
President Zelensky announced a significant agreement for a new package of Patriot air defence interceptors, though he declined to name the supplying nation, delivery schedule, or missile quantity. The deal addresses critical air defence shortages, particularly interceptors capable of stopping ballistic missiles.
NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Alexis Grinkovich, told Reuters the alliance is increasing intelligence sharing among allies following a series of suspected Russian sabotage incidents and hybrid operations. Grinkovich stated NATO possesses the necessary tools to manage escalating risks.
UK Cuts Refugee Support
The British government has reduced funding for the Homes for Ukraine scheme by seventy per cent, cutting monthly thank you payments to hosts from £350 ($466) to £100 ($133) effective from 1st January 2027. Local authority funding will drop from £5,900 ($7,856) to £3,300 ($4,394) per arrival. The scheme currently supports 181,000 Ukrainians living in the UK.
The reduction, representing an annual saving of approximately £10 million ($13.3 million), was announced on the same day that British defence and critical infrastructure executives were briefed on Russian threat assessments by Security Minister Dan Jarvis and Armed Forces Minister Louise Sandher-Jones.
Diplomatic Manoeuvres
The United States has proposed that the United Arab Emirates host trilateral meetings with Ukraine and Russia to discuss ending the war. President Zelensky told reporters via WhatsApp briefing that Washington has suggested the Emirates as a possible location and that Ukraine awaits a date proposal.
Zelensky also confirmed that President Trump had approved licences for Ukraine to manufacture Patriot missiles, following their previous meeting.
In Central Europe, Hungary refused to participate in Ukraine’s new Carpathian 8 diplomatic initiative, sending only a deputy ambassador to the summit. Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar issued a statement condemning Ukraine for supposedly claiming a sovereign country as a member of international cooperation without prior consultation.
Serhiy Sydorenko, editor of European Pravda, reported that during preparations for the C8 summit, Budapest attempted to humiliate Kyiv and provoke a reaction, reflecting Hungary’s new policy of obstruction. Magyar has rejected numerous offers to meet with Zelensky, and Hungary continues to veto Ukraine’s EU accession path.
EU Sanctions Deadlock
France, Slovakia, and Luxembourg insisted that two Russian oligarchs be removed from the latest EU sanctions package, with Latvia initially refusing agreement before abstaining. The oligarchs were ultimately dropped from the list, which will be voted on again in early October.
France cited national security grounds for pushing to remove Uzbek-Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov, sanctioned since 2022. France was reportedly pressured by Azerbaijan, which holds two French citizens. Following Usmanov’s de-sanctioning, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev pardoned Martin Ryan, one of the detained French citizens. The second French national, Anas Derz, remains imprisoned on bribery charges.
The development sets a dangerous precedent, with Russia immediately requesting all Russian businessmen be removed from sanctions lists.
French Far-Right Positions
Marine Le Pen, leader of the National Rally and frontrunner for the 2027 French presidential election, told Politico she plans to withdraw France from NATO’s integrated command if elected, but only after Russia’s war in Ukraine ends. Le Pen also pledged to stop financial support for Ukraine, stating France lacks the budgetary capacity.
Le Pen welcomed Washington’s decision to invite Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to the G20 summit in Miami this December, saying “any initiatives aimed at putting an end to this slaughter are welcome”.
Ukraine Museum in Berlin
A new Ukraine Museum has opened in Berlin inside a Second World War bunker, offering a detailed history of the war since 2022 through artefacts including drone collections and a life-size cruise missile reconstruction. Located in a 6,500 square metre facility with five floors, the museum is the only one of its kind outside Ukraine.
Curator Enno Lenze, who frequently travels to Ukraine to deliver aid and collect objects, explained the museum’s purpose: “This is what makes it so tricky for us. The war is still unfolding. We make this like a snapshot of that moment when we started building it.”
The museum features personal items from Ukrainian families who fled, including the hat and shoes of a young girl named Alisa. “These are the little things that make it,” Lenze said. “If you can touch it, if you can see it, it makes it very personal.”
The exhibit includes a Fiat vehicle used as a social taxi in a front-line city, struck by an FPV drone on 12th April 2025 while transporting elderly residents. One volunteer survived with severe injuries; the other died at the scene. The museum displays the vehicle with a sign reading: “Please take photographs of it. This is a war crime.”
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