Ukrainian drones strike major Russian petrochemical plant in Bashkortostan, media reports

Prefer on Google by Kollen Post Smoke rises above the Sterlitamak Petrochemical Plant in Russia’s Bashkortostan Republic, reportedly targeted by Ukrainian drones on April 15, 2026. (Exilenova+/Telegram) Ukrainian drones reportedly struck a petrochemical plant in Sterlitamak in Russia's Bashkortostan Republic on April 15, independent Russian Telegram channel Astra said. Bashkortostan Governor Radiy Khabirov said on Telegram that around 11 a.m. local time, the region came under a drone attack, with the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) reportedly shot down over an industrial zone. Khabirov added that debris fell on the grounds of an enterprise but did not specify which one. "All services are working at the site, putting out the resultant fire," Khabirov said. In a subsequent post on Telegram, Khabirov said at nearly 1 p.m. local time that a driver in the local fire department had been killed in the attack. Sterlitamak, located roughly 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) east of the nearest Ukrainian-controlled territory, is one of Bashkortostan's key industrial hubs, in a Russian republic east of the Ural Mountains. Russian-language outlet Astra identified the site of today's attack as the Sterlitamak Petrochemical Plant, a major producer of, among other things, aviation fuel. A video published by a Russian military propaganda channel appears to show an Antonov-made "Liutyi" long-range drone striking the chemical plant. 0:00 / 1× A "Liutyi" deep-strike drone purportedly over the petrochemical plant in Bashkortostan, Russia. ( Kirill Fyodorov, Russian military propagandist/Telegram) Ukraine's aerial campaign on Russian oil infrastructure has been ongoing for years but has become more successful in recent months. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently said that unnamed foreign partners had asked Ukraine to curtail its attacks on Russian petrochemical infrastructure. Oil and gas prices have spiked as a result of the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump temporarily waived sanctions on Russian oil and gas as the closure of the Straits of Hormuz rippled across global stock markets.