The Daily Populous Saturday July 18th, 2026 evening edition
Authored by kyivindependent.com and submitted by Pleasant_Memory_2952

Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

Ukrainian forces struck two Russian logistics centers, an oil depot, and several targets in the Azov and Black Seas overnight on July 18, President Volodymyr Zelensky and the General Staff confirmed.

"Today, our long-range sanctions worked across three areas on Russian territory, as well as on our temporarily occupied land and at sea," Zelensky said on X.

Logistics centers used by Russian forces to supply sanctioned components for drone manufacturing and navigation equipment were hit in Moscow and Tambov oblasts, located more than 500 kilometers (310 miles) and 700 kilometers (430 miles) from the front lines, respectively, Zelensky said.

In Moscow Oblast, Ukrainian forces also struck the "Nafto-Service" oil depot in the city of Noginsk, causing a fire at the facility, the General Staff said on Telegram. The depot is used to store and supply fuel and lubricants, including for the Russian army, according to the statement.

Russian authorities reported that the Ukrainian attack caused a fire at a warehouse belonging to the major Russian online retailer "Wildberries" in the city of Elektrostal, south of Noginsk in Moscow Oblast.

The attack on the "Wildberries" fulfillment center marked the second strike of the night targeting the major online retailer's facilities. A similar attack struck a fulfillment center in the town of Kotovsk in Russia's Tambov Oblast earlier in the night.

Zelensky did not specify in his July 18 post whether the "Wildberries" warehouse stored equipment intended for the Russian military. But in a video address later that evening, he said the warehouses targeted in the overnight operation were linked to the military.

"These are Russian logistics facilities, specifically warehouses used to supply war materiel: navigation equipment, components for drone production, and other supplies for the Russian army," Zelensky said.

Initial estimates of the damage point to heavy losses for "Wildberries. According to the independent Russian investigative outlet Important Stories (IStories), the Moscow facility processed up to 7.4 million items per day, while the Tambov center handled up to 1.4 million items. Additionally, the Tambov facility reports a storage capacity of up to 54 million units.

Based on comparisons to a 2024 fire at a "Wildberries" facility in St. Petersburg, IStories estimated that the damages from the latest strikes could exceed 100 billion rubles (approximately $1.2 billion).

Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov claimed the attack killed at least one person and injured another 61 in the region. The highest number of casualties occurred in Elektrostal, where 57 injuries were recorded.

Amid the reported attack on Russia's capital region, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin claimed that over 370 Ukrainian drones were launched towards Moscow Oblast, with 64 downed while approaching the capital.

The large plumes of smoke were visible from within Moscow's city limits, video shows.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify these reports.

0:00 / 1× A purported video of smoke rising from a "Wildberries" warehouse in the city of Elektrostal in Russia's Moscow Oblast on July 18, 2026 following a reported Ukrainian drone strike. (Supernova_plus/Telegram)

Beyond these targets, Ukrainian forces hit two tankers, two floating cranes, one tugboat, and the Project 10410 Svetlyak-class patrol ship in the waters of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. The patrol ship was targeted in Kerch, Russian-occupied Crimea, marking the second time in two days that Ukrainian forces had struck a vessel of this type, the General Staff added.

The latest attack on oil infrastructure in Russia's capital region comes exactly one month after Ukrainian forces launched their largest-ever drone attack on Moscow, striking the Moscow Oil Refinery on June 18.

Ukraine has intensified its long-range strike campaign against military, industrial, and energy targets inside Russia in recent months, with drones repeatedly reaching Moscow and other regions hundreds of kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

In response, Russia has bolstered air defenses in the capital, deploying new Pantsir-SMD-E air defense systems on the rooftops of civilian buildings in Moscow.

Kyiv considers oil facilities to be valid military targets, as the energy sites provide fuel and funding for the Kremlin's war machine.

Ukraine has been waging an increasingly successful deep strike campaign against Russian oil infrastructure, striking oil depots, disrupting production at major facilities, and in some cases halting operations indefinitely.

Reuters reported on June 24 that the Moscow Oil Refinery is unlikely to resume production this year after suffering extensive damage in recent Ukrainian drone attacks.

Ukraine's attacks on oil infrastructure have mounted pressure on the Kremlin by aggravating a domestic fuel supply crisis that has already caused export bans, price hikes, and sales restrictions across Russia. Residents of various Russian regions continue to to report hours-long wait times at service stations.

Mysterious-Coconut24 on July 18th, 2026 at 17:41 UTC »

Good, let them have it. They need to suffer like Ukraine has.

Jerswar on July 18th, 2026 at 11:43 UTC »

How tall is that plume??

prickly_lineage on July 18th, 2026 at 07:47 UTC »

That smoke column is taller than anything in Manhattan, which says plenty about how much fuel was stockpiled there. Striking energy and logistics infrastructure at the same time is a calculated move to pressure Moscow's war machine. The "last stand" framing feels premature when Ukraine keeps proving it can still hit targets hundreds of miles from the front.