Foreign Partners Ask Ukraine to Suspend Strikes on Russian Oil Facilities

Foreign partners have asked Ukraine to pause strikes on Russian oil facilities amid shortages and rising fuel prices caused by the Middle East conflict.

Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, told Bloomberg: “We will respond diplomatically. We are receiving signals on this issue.”

He added cautiously that a quick end to the conflict in the Middle East remains possible.

Recently, Ukrainian forces have conducted extensive strikes on Russian oil infrastructure, targeting processing plants, storage facilities, and port terminals.

According to Bloomberg, between March 23 and 29, Russia exported 16.23 million barrels of oil on 22 tankers, down 43% from the previous week’s 28.5 million barrels on 37 vessels.

Average daily exports fell from 4.1 million to 2.3 million barrels, the lowest level since February 2025.

Cumulative shipments from Baltic ports also dropped to their lowest since the full-scale war began, with only four tankers loaded in Primorsk and two in Ust-Luga during the week.

Attacks on the Russian Oil Industry

Ukrainian drones recently struck LLC LUKOIL-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez in Kstovo, Nizhny Novgorod region, one of Russia’s largest gasoline refineries.

The refinery produces over 50 commercial petroleum products, including motor fuels, bitumen, paraffins, and lubricants. It also carries out catalytic cracking and maintains its technological installations.

Its oil residue processing facility, operational since 2022, has a capacity of 2.1 million tons per year.

Earlier, on April 2, drones hit an oil refinery in Ufa, Russia, located about 1,400 km from Ukraine. The plant processes 7-7.4 million tons of crude oil annually and produces automotive gasoline, diesel, aviation fuel, lubricants, and other petroleum products.