Novak Says Ukraine Hit Two Russian Oil Refineries; Regional Officials Do Not Confirm

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak claimed on October 14 that Ukraine attacked two Russian oil refineries, in the Saratov and Ryazan regions. The statement came three days after US President Donald Trump said Russia and Ukraine had agreed not to strike each other's refineries, and it raises questions about whether any such energy ceasefire is in effect.

Novak's claim

Citing the Energy Ministry and the companies involved, Novak said the Kyiv government attacked two refineries that day and that nothing indicated Ukraine was moving toward an energy ceasefire. He did not say which refineries were hit.

Authorities in the two regions had not reported any attacks on refineries. Saratov Governor Roman Busargin said a civilian was killed and residential buildings were damaged in Balakovo, a town that hosts a data center of Sber, Russia's largest bank; the governor did not mention the facility. He did not say an attack had been repelled in Saratov, where the region's only oil refinery is located.

Rostov Governor Yury Slyusar wrote on Telegram that more than 160 drones had been destroyed or disabled over the region, adding that no casualties or impacts on the ground had been reported.

Meduza, an independent Russian-language outlet, said it found no reports of explosions or fires at Russian refineries on Russian or Ukrainian monitoring channels.

Background

Trump said on October 11 that the two countries had agreed not to attack each other's oil refineries. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the announcement was news to him, but later said Ukraine's armed forces had received all the relevant orders. He did not explicitly confirm that he had agreed to stop attacks on refineries.