DRAMATIC footage shows the moment people fled as a huge fireball explosion ripped through a major Russian oil refinery.
Ukrainian forces blasted the Rostneft Oil Refinery in Ryazan with long-range kamikaze drones last night in the latest blow for Vladimir Putin.
ReutersHuge flames rose from the scene[/caption]
East2WestThe depot went up in flames after a drone strike[/caption]
Towering flames and huge plumes of smoke could be seen rising from the site in footage shared on social media.
People ran from the scene as the inferno raged.
At least 20 drones targeted the Ryazan region, southeast of Moscow, overnight – striking the depot and a power station.
Regional governor Pavel Malkov said emergency services were tackling the aftermath of an air attack.
Ryazan oil refinery is one of the largest in Russia and is critical for fuel supplies to Moscow.
Its capacity is 18 million tons a year, and it is owned by state company Rosneft, headed by close Putin crony Igor Sechin.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces had intercepted and destroyed 121 drones targeting 13 regions in one of the biggest bombardments of Putin’s territory.
A plant making microchips for Putin’s deadly Iskander ballistic missiles went up in flames in Bryansk region after another strike.
Drones also targeted other regions, including those that border Ukraine and Kursk, where Ukrainian troops hold a chunk of land despite Russian efforts to eject them.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said early on Friday that air defences had intercepted attacks by Ukrainian drones at four locations around the Russian capital.
Putin’s motorcade was seen rushing to the Kremlin at around 11.30pm on Thursday night, ahead of the fierce bombardment of western Russia by Ukrainian drones.
The reason for his late night visit to his office was not clear.
Airports in Russian cities Kazan, Nizhnekamsk, Penza, Samara, Saratov and Ufa were forced to suspend flights due to drone strikes.
It comes as Donald Trump has hit Putin with an ultimatum to sign a deal to end the “ridiculous” war in Ukraine – or face the consequences.
Trump threw the gauntlet squarely at Putin’s feet, threatening: “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
Trump warned of a tirade of taxes, tariffs and sanctions on everything sold from Russia to the US and other countries if Putin does not co-operate with peace talks.
In a post on his platform Truth Social, the new President said: “I’m not looking to hurt Russia.
“I love the Russian people, and always had a very good relationship with President Putin.
He continued: “All of that being said, I’m going to do Russia, whose economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big favour.
“Settle now, and stop this ridiculous war”, adding that it’s “only going to get worse.”
Russia responded swiftly to Trump’s ultimatum.
Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia’s ambassador to the UN, said the Kremlin would need to hear specific details from Trump about any deal before proceeding.
ReutersPeople run as smoke rises from an explosion in Ryazan[/caption]
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