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Pumping Station in Flames: Ukraine Strikes Russia’s Druzhba Pipeline Again
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![Photo of Vlad Litnarovych]( "Photo of Vlad Litnarovych")
Ukrainian drones struck the Unecha oil pumping station in Russia’s Bryansk region, dealing another blow to the massive Druzhba pipeline that carries crude from Russia to Europe, confirmed by Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, who posted footage of the strike on Telegram on August 21.
According to Brovdi, the strike was carried out by the 14th Regiment of his drone force.
“By the end of August 21, the Unecha station is out. Our birds of the 14th regiment delivered a sting to the enemy,” Brovdi wrote, adding the Hungarian phrase “Ruszkik haza!”—meaning “Russians, go home.”
This marks the second Ukrainian strike on the Unecha facility in just over a week. A previous drone attack on August 12 destroyed two pumping stations along with adjacent technical buildings and equipment.
The Unecha station is a critical hub along the 5,500-kilometer Druzhba pipeline, which carries as much as 60 million tons of Russian crude annually.
Operated by state-owned Transneft, the facility helps supply Russia’s Ust-Luga export terminal on the Baltic Sea and also feeds the Mozyr refinery in Belarus. Its location—just 60 kilometers from the Ukrainian border—has made it a vulnerable yet strategically vital target.
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Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced on Facebook that crude deliveries to Hungary had once again stopped following what he called repeated attacks on the pipeline.
“Overnight we received news that the Druzhba oil pipeline on the Russian-Belarusian border came under attack yet again—for the third time in a short period. Oil deliveries to Hungary have stopped once more,” Szijjártó wrote.
He called the incident “another attack on Hungary’s energy security” and “another attempt to drag us into the war,” while vowing to “continue supporting peace efforts and defend national interests with all our strength.”
Earlier, a major fire broke out at the Lukoil oil refinery in Russia’s Volgograd after a drone strike overnight.
