MOSCOW: Russia has accused Ukraine of carrying out drone attacks on oil tankers operating at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) marine terminal near Novorossiysk, describing the strikes as a threat to civilian infrastructure and global energy security.
In a statement issued on Monday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova alleged that Ukrainian drones targeted vessels loading crude oil at the CPC terminal between July 17 and July 20. She claimed the attacks were intended to destabilize international energy markets and disrupt the transportation of oil.
Zakharova said several tankers, including vessels chartered by Kazakhstan’s Tengizchevroil and KazMunayGas, were affected during loading operations at the terminal in Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka. She described the incident as the fifth alleged attack on the consortium’s civilian infrastructure, which she argued is protected under international law.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also emphasized that the CPC is jointly owned by stakeholders from Russia, Kazakhstan, the United States and several European countries, arguing that the alleged strikes impact the interests of all consortium members.
Moscow welcomed Kazakhstan’s condemnation of the reported attacks. Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry said the targeting of civilian vessels transporting oil through CPC infrastructure was unacceptable and called for an immediate halt to such actions.
Russia urged the international community to condemn what it described as attacks on civilian energy infrastructure, warning that silence from the global community could be interpreted as acceptance of such actions.
Ukraine had not publicly commented on the latest allegations at the time of publication. Kyiv has previously stated that its military operations focus on infrastructure supporting Russia’s war effort.
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