Ukrainian long-range drones struck energy and military sites in St. Petersburg early Wednesday, hours before the city’s flagship economic forum began. The attacks targeted infrastructure in several districts of Russia’s second-largest city, sending plumes of thick black smoke over the city as international guests gathered for the event.
The strikes hit an oil export terminal and a navy base, setting the facilities ablaze and damaging a Russian warship on the Baltic coast. The region’s governor acknowledged that several facilities were damaged and a number of people were injured. The drones flew more than 600 miles to reach their targets, crashing into oil storage facilities after Russian air defenses failed to shoot them down.
The attacks coincided with the opening of the three-day Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum, often described as Russia’s answer to Davos. The event, promoted by President Vladimir Putin, serves as a leading venue for attracting foreign capital and was expected to host approximately 20,000 people from 130 countries.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed the strikes as necessary to bring peace closer, noting the effort to demonstrate the vulnerability of Russia's major cities and embarrass the Kremlin chief. In response, Moscow stated it would continue to strike Ukraine systematically. This escalation follows a massive Russian drone and missile barrage on Ukraine the previous day that killed at least 23 people, and comes as NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte arrived in Kyiv for an unannounced visit.