by WorldTribune Staff, October 12, 2025 Real World News
U.S. intelligence has enabled Ukraine to strike deep inside Russian territory. The strikes have focused on vital Russian energy assets including oil refineries, in what officials say is an effort to weaken Vladimir Putin’s economy and force him to the negotiating table.
On Saturday, Ukraine’s SBU security service said its elite Alpha unit’s long-range drones had successfully hit the Bashneft-UNPZ oil refinery in Ufa, some 1,400 kilometers from Ukraine. The plant is one of the largest refineries in Russia, supplying fuel and lubricants to the Russian army.
It marked the third strike on energy facilities in Russia’s Bashkortostan region in the past month.
A series of communications between President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s Volodymry Zelenskyy have raised questions about relations between the two countries dating back to the Obama and Biden Administrations.
Trump posted on Oct. 12:
The Ukraine Impeachment (of me!) Scam was a far bigger Illegal Hoax than Watergate. I sincerely hope the necessary authorities, including CONGRESS, are looking into this! Adam “Schiffty” Schiff was sooo dishonest and corrupt. So many laws, and protocols, were violated, and just plain broken!!! President DJT
Related: Trump’s real crime? ‘He’s serious about draining the swamp’, September 27, 2019
The shift in strategy reportedly came after a phone call between Trump and Zelenskyy in July, when Trump asked whether Ukraine could strike Moscow if the U.S. provided long-range weapons.
Trump signaled his backing for a strategy to “make them [Russians] feel the pain” and compel the Kremlin to negotiate, reports said. The White House later said Trump was “merely asking a question, not encouraging further killing”.
“The U.S. intelligence helps Kyiv shape route planning, altitude, timing and mission decisions, enabling Ukraine’s long-range, one-way attack drones to evade Russian air defenses,” the Financial Times reported on Sunday. citing officials familiar with the matter.
“Three people familiar with the operation said Washington was closely involved in all stages of planning,” the report said.
“Soon after the July call, the four people familiar with the Ukrainian deep strike drone operation said US intelligence with a new level of specificity began flowing to Kyiv. That information has allowed Kyiv to better map Russian air defenses and plot strike routes,” the Financial Times report said.
At least 16 of Russia’s 38 oil refineries have been struck, some repeatedly, disrupting more than one million barrels a day of refining capacity, according to Energy Aspects, a research group.
Putin feels the pain as U.S. helps Ukraine strike Russian energy sites added by Editor Two on
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