Russia warns foreigners to leave Kyiv as strikes intensify

Russia has warned foreign nationals to leave Kyiv, saying it has launched a new wave of strikes targeting Ukraine’s defence industry and military command infrastructure.

According to statements reported by the state news agency TASS, Russia’s foreign ministry said the strikes would target “defence industry facilities” in the Ukrainian capital, as well as “decision-making centres and command posts”.

The warning comes amid an escalation in attacks between the two sides.

Separately, Ukraine said it carried out a drone strike on Russia’s Syzran oil refinery on 21 May, damaging a key processing unit. Local authorities in Russia’s Samara region said two people were killed in the town of Syzran.

Industry sources said the refinery’s main crude distillation unit, responsible for more than 70% of its processing capacity, had been shut down and that repairs could take more than a month.

The plant is owned by Russian oil giant Rosneft, which has not commented on the incident.

Mines found on tanker in Baltic port

Earlier, Russia’s Investigative Committee said several magnetic mines had been discovered on a tanker in the Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga, raising concerns about possible sabotage targeting energy infrastructure.

The mines were found by divers during an inspection of the Liberia-flagged tanker Arrhenius, which had arrived from the Belgian port of Antwerp to load liquefied petroleum gas.

Svetlana Petrenko, a spokesperson for the Investigative Committee, said the devices had been produced by a NATO country and were successfully deactivated.

She added that initial findings suggested the mines could not have been installed within Russian territorial waters, implying they may have been attached before the vessel entered the Baltic Sea.

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NATO has not commented on the claims.

According to shipping data, the tanker is managed by a company based in the United Arab Emirates and was due to sail to the Turkish port of Samsun.

Rising concerns over infrastructure security

Russia has increased security measures at its ports following a series of suspected sabotage incidents targeting oil and energy infrastructure.

Last year, authorities ordered divers to inspect vessels entering Russian ports after suspected attacks involving several oil tankers. In one incident in February 2025, the tanker Koala ran aground in Ust-Luga after an explosion in its engine room.

The latest developments underline the growing risks facing both military and energy installations as the conflict continues, with both sides expanding their use of long-range strikes and targeting critical infrastructure.

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