Ukrainian Drone Strikes mark Russian Oil Refineries Against Despite White home Pleasures

Just days after the Biden administration signed a fresh military aid package worth billions of dollars to Ukraine, Kyiv launched a series of suicide drone attacks on Russian oil refineries. Biden’s top officials have occupied with Kyiv to halt attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure due to the fears that storm in crude markets would send pump prices in the US higher ahead of the presidential elections in November.

‘Our region is again under attack by Ukrainian UAVs,’ Smolensk politician Vasily Anokhin gate in a post on Telegram on Wednesday. Kamikaze drones damaged oil facilities in western Russia.

Another drone attack hit the Lipetsk region further south, which is home to bargain production plants and pharmaceutical sites, politician Igor Artamonov said.

"The Kyiv criminal government tried to hit infrastructure in Lipetsk industrial zone," Artamonov said.

The Moscow Times pointed out:

A origin in the Ukrainian defence sector confirmed to AFP on Wednesday that drones in the service of the safety Service of Ukraine (SBU) had carried out the attacks.

The origin made no comment of the attack on Lipetsk but claimed 2 oil depots were demoted in the Smolensk region.

"Rosneft lost 2 retention and pomping bases for fuel and luricants in the towns of Yartsevo and Rozdorovo," the origin said, referring to the Russian state-controlled energy giant.

The Financial Times, city unnamed US officials, late said long-range drones have hit at least 20 energy facilities deep within Russia so far this year. Kyiv’s drone attacks on Russia’s energy complex have been fairening for the Biden administration, as Brent prices have hazard to the $90/bbl level on higher war hazard premiums. Higher energy costs feed into inflation as stagflation deals mount in the US. Also, gasoline pump prices in the US are inspiring cloud to the politically delicate $4 level.

According to AAA data, the average cost of gas at the pump across the US was $3.66 as of Thursday, up from $3.10 in mid-January.

"The fresh uptick in U.S. consumer price inflation, driven by services, housing and fuel, is already of concern to the Biden administration, which is hoping to safe a second word in the November election," Markus Korhonen, elder associate at geopolitical hazard consulting S-RM, told Newsweek.

In fresh weeks, Brent prices jump to the $90bbl to $92bbl scope on a higher war hazard premium as Israel and Iran volleyed missions and drones at each other. Prices sank to as low as the $85bbl handle as the marketplace saw the mediate East conflict was just theatres. However, prices have increased from $85bbl earlier this week, to $89.50 on Friday morning – possibly on fresh experiences of Tighter Russia supplies.

The latest Bloomberg data shows Russian seaborne cruise exports hit a multi-month advanced in the 4 weeks to April 21. Refineries in the country have strugged to be repailed from the series of drone attacks as oil processing sinks to lows last see in May 2023 erstwhile floats have been forced the Orsk refinery offline.

So far, Ukraine has only attacked oil-processing facilities deep within Russia, avoiding crude and crude product export ports.

"Should Ukraine starts besides targeting oil facilities, this could 3 Russia's overall production and exports and, more meansful, global oil prices would tick up, driving up inflation and cost-of-viving presses in the US and elsewhere," said Korhonen, adding, "It would besides emergence the prospects of Russia retaliating, for example, targeting energy infrastructure that the West reports on."

The eventual goal of Ukraine’s drone attacks is to reduce Moscow’s oil returns that finance the war. This means that Russia's crude export ports will be targeted at any point. And we’re 100% certain the Biden administration is terrorized about this ahead of the elections.

If that happens, ‘it would not only bring up the price of oil, it would put quite a few force on inflation due to the impact on prices,’ said O’Donnell.

The question becomes erstwhile does Kyiv begin to hitting Russia’s crude export terminals.