Residents of St Petersburg were urged to remain indoors on Saturday after Ukraine launched a large-scale drone attack on Russia’s second-largest city, striking deep inside Russian territory as the St Petersburg International Economic Forum drew to a close.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said its air defences shot down 376 Ukrainian drones overnight across 16 regions and areas, including St Petersburg, Crimea, and the Azov and Black seas. St Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov said three people sustained minor injuries, while Alexander Drozdenko, governor of the surrounding Leningrad region, said 141 drones were downed there in what he described as an “unprecedented attack.”
The strike underscored Kyiv’s expanding long-range drone capabilities and came days after Ukrainian drones hit an oil terminal and a nearby naval base in St Petersburg hours before the opening of the economic forum, President Vladimir Putin’s annual investment showcase.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the latest drones travelled about 1,000 kilometres to strike Russian naval arsenals and a base in Kronstadt, near St Petersburg. He said another long-range attack reached about 500 kilometres into Russia’s southern Krasnodar region and hit an oil depot.
“Russia must end its war and stop its attacks on life,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “Any manifestation of injustice against Ukraine will receive a just response. It is time to end this war.”
The attack came shortly after Putin rejected Zelenskyy’s proposal for direct face-to-face talks aimed at ending the war. Speaking at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum on Friday, Putin said he saw “no point” in such a meeting at this stage, arguing that experts should first work out possible agreements.
“It only makes sense for the Ukrainian side to stop the advance of our armed forces,” Putin said, insisting that negotiations should be preceded by practical arrangements.
The two countries remain far apart. Moscow has demanded recognition of its control over territory seized from Ukraine, while Kyiv insists that any settlement must include the restoration of its territorial integrity.
Meanwhile, Russian attacks continued inside Ukraine. Officials in Zaporizhzhia said bodies of two men earlier reported missing after a Russian strike had been recovered. In Dnipropetrovsk, regional authorities said one person was killed and three others wounded in drone and artillery attacks. AP also reported that Russia launched 272 strike drones overnight, with Ukraine’s air force saying 249 were intercepted.
The latest exchanges highlight the widening drone war, with both sides increasingly using long-range strikes as battlefield front lines remain largely static.
