Large plumes of smoke were seen rising over the Moscow region on July 20 after Ukrainian drone strikes hit an oil depot and logistics facilities, injuring ten people. The attacks came as Kyiv vowed to retaliate for recent deadly Russian strikes that killed several civilians.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Ukrainian forces targeted an oil storage facility and logistics infrastructure in the Moscow region. He also said that two tankers from Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” and four cargo vessels were struck as Ukraine launched hundreds of drones overnight.
In recent weeks, Ukraine has intensified attacks on Russian energy and logistics infrastructure, including a strike on a Wildberries warehouse over the weekend that reportedly killed seven people and injured dozens.
Wildberries, Russia’s largest online retailer—often compared to Amazon—announced that it temporarily suspended operations on July 20 as a precaution before later resuming services.
Ukraine has accused Wildberries of selling military-related supplies used by Russia’s armed forces, including dual-use equipment such as body armor and surveillance technology.
“We are responding, fairly, to every Russian attack against our cities and communities,” Zelensky wrote on social media, confirming the drone strikes on the Moscow region. He added that Ukraine’s “long-range capabilities have produced results against logistics facilities and an oil depot.”
The Ukrainian strikes followed a Russian missile attack on a cargo ship transporting corn near the Ukrainian port of Odesa, which left ten people dead.
Ukraine’s Navy said the Golden Leo, a Guinea-Bissau-flagged cargo vessel crewed by Indian and Syrian nationals, caught fire after being struck by three Russian cruise missiles on July 19.
Following overnight search-and-rescue operations, authorities confirmed that nine crew members and one harbor pilot were killed, while eight of the vessel’s 17 crew members were rescued.
The commander of Ukraine’s drone forces, Robert Brovdi, said on Telegram that Ukrainian forces had struck seven Russian vessels in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, as well as seven energy facilities in Russian-occupied Crimea.
According to Brovdi, since July 1, Ukrainian operations have hit 183 Russian vessels, 103 energy facilities, and 25 air defense assets, reducing the ferry transport capacity across the Kerch Strait by 75 percent.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia launched an overnight attack using two air-launched missiles and 94 attack drones.
Regional officials said Russian forces also used modernized guided aerial bombs for the first time against the city of Pavlohrad.
In a separate Russian airstrike on Zaporizhzhia, regional governor Ivan Fedorov said one person was killed and five others were injured on the morning of July 20. The attack also damaged residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure.
