Since the conflict with Russia began in 2022, Ukraine has been increasingly reliant on UAVs to target its enemy’s oil and gas infrastructure. By using advanced technology, including AI guidance systems, Ukrainian UAVs have been able to enhance their accuracy and evade Russian jamming capabilities.
One such attack occurred in mid-March when a Ukrainian drone crashed into Rosneft’s Ryazan oil refinery, located 500 km from the border. In early April, the raids extended to the UAV factory and a Russian oil and gas facility in Tatarstan, over 1,100 km from the border.
These attacks demonstrate Ukraine’s ability to overcome Russian air defense networks and electronic warfare systems to strike at Russia’s vital oil and gas infrastructure, which is a significant source of revenue for the country. Experts view these UAV attacks as potentially more impactful than traditional Western sanctions bypassing energy sector-focused measures.
Ukraine’s use of UAVs allows it to target specific complex facilities like distillation towers crucial for oil processing, which are difficult for Russia to replace due to their reliance on Western technology. Instead of random attacks, Ukraine’s raids aim to disrupt critical facilities and cause economic damage to Russia.
Despite concerns from the US about the economic repercussions of these raids, Ukraine remains determined to target Russian oil facilities to undermine its wartime economy.
