Kyiv Takes Aim at Cross-Border Targets as Russia Presses Advantage in Kharkiv

Kharkiv region could fall to Russia unless United States gives Kyiv more Patriot systems, Ukrainian leader warns.

Soldiers from the 'Achilles' Battalion of the 92nd assault brigade of the Ukrainian Army control a Vampire hexacopter drone during a mission flight over a front line near Chasiv Yar, in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, on May 1, 2024. Genya Savilov/AFP via Getty Images

Ukrainian drones set an oil refinery ablaze in Russia’s Black Sea city of Tuapse and killed two people in the western Belgorod region, according to Russia’s Ministry of Defence.

“Air defenses downed more than 100 Ukrainian drones last night, most of which were destroyed over the southern Krasnodar region and Crimea,” the Russian defense ministry said in a May 17 statement.