Ukraine strikes Yaroslavl oil refinery, causing gasoline shortages across Russia

Ukraine’s sustained drone campaign against Russian energy infrastructure has found its most consequential target yet. The Slavneft-YANOS refinery in Yaroslavl Oblast, one of Russia’s five largest oil refineries with a capacity of approximately 15 million tonnes of crude per year, has been hit repeatedly throughout 2026, and the cumulative damage is now impossible for Moscow to paper over. By late June, Ukrainian strikes had reduced Russia’s overall refining capacity by roughly 25%. The domestic fuel supply shortfall hit approximately 15%, triggering fuel rationing in at least 56 regions across the country. That list includes Moscow itself. A refinery under siege The Yaroslavl facility, located roughly 250 kilometers northeast of Moscow, has endured a relentless series of attacks. Confirmed strikes landed on March 28, April 26, May 8, May 22, and continued into the summer with hits on July 6, July 16, and August 6, bringing the total to at least seven separate attacks in 2026 alone. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the strikes on June 28, framing them in characteristically blunt terms. Zelenskyy described the attacks as “long-range sanctions” aimed at crippling Russ...