Drones strike Russia’s Ust-Luga port again as EU officials visit Ukraine

Attacks come as Ukraine says its air defences shot down 267 out of 289 drones launched by Russia overnight.Ukrainian drones have struck ⁠Russia’s Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga for the fifth time in 10 days, as Kyiv continues to step up attacks on Russia’s oil export infrastructure.Regional governor Alexander Drozdenko said on Tuesday that three people, including two children, were treated for injuries and several buildings were damaged in the overnight attacks.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Ukraine’s Zelenskyy signs air defence deals with UAE, Qatar on Gulf tourlist 2 of 3Could Ukraine’s drone expertise serve Gulf countries?list 3 of 3US-Israel war on Iran: What’s happening on day 30 of attacks?end of listIn a message on Telegram, he ⁠said air-raid alerts in the region had been lifted ⁠but gave no details on damage to the port.Ust-Luga, on the southeastern shore of the Gulf of Finland, is a sprawling ⁠complex of oil-processing facilities and export terminals handling crude ⁠oil and oil products.Authorities said it ‌was hit on March 22, 25, 27, 29 and 31, forcing suspensions of export operations.According to source-based data, the port exported 32.9 million metric tonnes of oil products last year and typically handles about 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day.Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russia’s oil export infrastructure over the past month, launching its heaviest drone attacks of the more than four-year war against the Baltic ports of Ust-Luga and Primorsk.Peace talks to end the war in Ukraine have been suspended due to ‌the ‌Middle East war, and officials in Kyiv have expressed concerns that weapons supplies could be diverted away from Ukraine as Western military resources are stretched.Oil prices have surged to their highest level in nearly two weeks amid escalation on multiple fronts of the US-Israel war on Iran, with Brent crude, the global benchmark, topping $116 a barrel.