Drone Attacks Menace Russia’s Key Route for Exporting Oil
- Attack shuts Novatek plant close to major oil-export terminals
- Russia has few alternatives if attacks disrupt crude exports
Novatek site near Ust-Luga, Russia.
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A new front opened in Russia’s war on Ukraine that highlights the vulnerability of oil exports from the nation’s western ports, after reports of drone attacks against facilities on the Baltic coast.
Last week, the first ever Ukrainian drone reached Russia’s Leningrad region, some 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the border. That aircraft was downed over the privately-owned Petersburg Oil Terminal without causing damage, according to Russian authorities.