Fire at Oil Depot in Russia's Kursk After Cross-Border Strike, Governor Says

Regional governor Roman Starovoyt said on the Telegram messaging app that an oil depot in the Kashira district of Russia’s Kursk region caught fire after an attack on Monday, and that there were no reported injuries. He did not specify what weapons or delivery systems were used in the strike. The incident marks the latest in a series of cross-border incidents since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In recent months Kyiv has stepped up operations it says are aimed at degrading Russian military logistics and the supply chains that sustain Moscow’s forces, often focusing on energy infrastructure and rear-area facilities. Kyiv does not always publicly claim responsibility for such strikes, but Ukrainian officials have repeatedly asserted their right to target military-support infrastructure on Russian soil. Russian authorities have also reported numerous drone and missile attacks on border regions including Kursk, some of which have caused fires at fuel storage sites. Military analysts say strikes on fuel depots and other logistics nodes can have outsized effects on battlefield mobility and sustainment, forcing adversaries to reroute supplies and invest in additional air defenses and hardened storage. Beyond the immediate tactical impact, attacks on fuel facilities carry environmental and civilian risks, including secondary explosions, long-burning blazes and local air quality impacts that can affect nearby towns and emergency responders. The strike also highlights broader escalation and humanitarian concerns. Moscow has repeatedly targeted Ukrainian energy infrastructure — power plants, substations and fuel caches — arguing it degrades Kyiv’s ability to sustain combat operations, while Kyiv and its Western supporters say such attacks aim to weaken civilian morale and critical services. With neither side achieving decisive breakthroughs in recent months, both have increasingly sought to hit each other’s logistical and energy systems as a way to gain advantage or impose costs. Observers say the pattern is likely to continue as both sides adapt and target what they see as legitimate military-support infrastructure. The incident in Kursk will be closely watched by regional and international actors for signs of escalation, and by energy and logistics planners concerned about winter fuel supplies and the resilience of civilian infrastructure in border regions.