KYIV: Ukraine said that its long-range strikes have neutralized more than half of Russia's oil refining capacity, hampering Moscow's ability to supply its forces during its 4 1/2-year-old invasion.
The Defense Ministry said Sunday that recent strikes on refineries in cities including Moscow, Yaroslavl, Ust-Luga, Perm, Saratov and Syzran had put 51% of Russia's oil refining capacity out of action. The claim could not be independently verified.
Both Moscow and Kyiv have intensified their aerial assaults as progress along the 1,200-kilometer (750-mile) front line has largely ground to a halt.
Ukrainian forces have repeatedly attacked refineries from Moscow to Siberia, sparking a widespread fuel crisis in Russia earlier this year that forced authorities to restrict gasoline sales.
President Vladimir Putin said in a rare admission Thursday that the strikes had caused Russia to lose roughly 1% of its gross domestic product.
"They started attacking oil refineries and openly declared the goal of damaging our economy. Did they achieve their goal? Partially," Putin said at a meeting of the Valdai Club forum of international foreign policy experts.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevhenii Khmara said that analysts from Ukraine's intelligence services, the General Staff, and the Defense Ministry itself had assessed the effects of the strikes.
"Fifty-one percent of struck refining capacity is a significant blow to the enemy's economy, to its ability to carry out aggression and supply its troop groupings. Our deep strikes continue to bring the war to Russian territory," he said.
