Recent Refinery Strike Shows 'No Secure Areas in Russia's Distant Backlines'
Ukraine's unmanned aerial vehicles have hit the Russian Bashneft processing plant in the city of Ufa, positioned approximately 1,400 km from Ukraine, causing blasts and a inferno, as reported by a source in Ukraine's intelligence agency.
This constitutes the 3rd Ukrainian security service deep strike in Bashkortostan in the last month. These attacks demonstrate that there are no safe places in the distant backlines of the Russian state.
Zelenskyy Appeals to US President to Mediate Ceasefire in Ukraine
Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged the US President to mediate a ceasefire in Ukraine in a call on Saturday.
"If a hostilities can be halted in a particular zone, then certainly further hostilities can be stopped as well, covering the conflict with Russia," he stated, commending the US President's "outstanding" Gaza ceasefire plan and urging the US president to influence the Russian government into talks.
Moscow's Assaults Claim Casualties in the Country
Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory resulted in the deaths of five people on Saturday and cut power to areas of the southern Odesa area, as stated by authorities in Ukraine.
Two civilians died inside a religious building in Kostyantynivka when it was targeted, per municipal sources.
In Russia's adjacent territory of Belgorod, a lorry operator was fatally wounded by a Ukrainian strike, per municipal sources.
Energy Restoration Operations in the Capital
Work carried on on Saturday to restore power in the Ukrainian capital, after assaults.
Energy had been returned to in excess of 800,000 citizens by the weekend and the major utility provider stated the primary operations to restore power was finished though partial blackouts persisted.
Anti-Aircraft Efforts and UAV Downings
The Ukrainian defense forces neutralized 54 of 78 Russian drones sent targeting Ukraine in the dark hours, the aerial defense command announced on the weekend.
The Russian defense officials stated it shot down 42 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory.
Cuba Rejects Allegations of Sending Soldiers to the War
Havana on Saturday denied American assertions it has deployed troops to engage in the conflict in Ukraine, while declaring Cuban authorities "are without precise details about Cuban nationals" engaged "voluntarily" or "in the military forces of the conflicting parties".
The foreign ministry in the capital stated 26 nationals had been given prison terms to incarceration from five to 14 years for mercenary activity since September 2023 when information emerged of Cuban nationals being sent to the front in Ukraine.
Surrender Initiative Initiative Reports Data on Cuban Enlistment
The program, a Ukrainian government initiative that promotes adversaries to give up, stated in May: "Our information indicates the personal data of one thousand and twenty-eight Cubans who entered into agreements with the Russian armed forces in the past two years."
The Cuban foreign ministry commented of Cuban nationals who might be engaged: "Undeniably that none of them has the backing, dedication, or authorization of the Cuban state for their activities."
Relatives of Cuban nationals who traveled to Russia in 2023 reported to Agence France-Presse at the time that their loved ones had been tricked into joining through advertisements on social media.