The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations announced in the early hours of Monday morning that a big fire had broken out at fuel storage tanks near to Russia’s most critical oil export pipeline.
Officials told RIA Novosti, a state-owned domestic news agency that the fire broke out at a Transneft-Druzhba JSC facility and another location. There have been no reported casualties, and there is no threat to residential structures.
The cause of the fire was not revealed by the Emergency Ministry. Bryansk is around 170 kilometers from Ukraine’s border, and the incident is the latest in a string of mysterious mishaps linked to Ukrainian military operations. Bryansk is home to over 400,000 people and serves as a vital regional hub.
Transneft, the pipeline operator, has yet to comment on whether oil flows through the main Druzhba pipeline have been impacted. The Druzhba, which dates from the Soviet era, transports over 20% of Russian oil exports to Europe directly to refineries in Germany and Central Europe.
According to Rob Lee, a noted military analyst, the hit on Bryansk itself might have been carried out with Tochka-U ballistic missiles fired from within Ukraine, capable of striking both the oil plant and the neighbouring military post.
Other events of a comparable nature
According to Moscow daily Kommersant, another fire was reported in the city’s Fokinsky neighbourhood, the cause of which has yet to be determined.
Ukrainian helicopters assaulted a fuel depot in Belgorod earlier this month, another crucial supply source for Russian troops in Ukraine, while a key rail bridge connecting Russia and eastern Ukraine was seriously damaged last week.
The Kremlin announced that an investigation into the cause of the fire will be initiated, though it is unlikely to blame Ukraine because doing so would confirm Kyiv’s ability to successfully assault military sites within Russia.
Published by: Aditya Negi
Edited by: Khushi Thakur
