Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has established a specialized long-range impact command within the armed forces to target Russian energy and logistics infrastructure, according to a decree signed on Friday.
The move follows recent drone strikes on major Russian energy facilities, including the Ilsky oil refinery in the Krasnodar region and the Ust-Luga oil refining complex in the Leningrad region, as reported by Ukraine's general staff.
Ukraine's drone forces commander, Robert Brovdi, stated that the campaign has disrupted Moscow's shipping operations near the Sea of Azov and targeted numerous fuel vessels.
New Command to Streamline Assets
“Today, I signed a decree establishing a special command within the armed forces – a command aimed at a long-range and, in effect, global impact on Russia in response to this war,” Zelenskyy said.
The newly formed unit is ordered to streamline all available military assets to weaken Moscow's primary financial and logistical support systems for the ongoing invasion.
“This command must focus 100% of available resources on further reducing Russia’s capacity to wage war,” Zelenskyy added.
The maritime restrictions prompted Russia to temporarily halt shipping through the Don-Azov Channel on Friday, according to three grain export industry sources.
Diplomatic discussions concurrently advanced in Kyiv, where US Senator Lindsey Graham met with Zelenskyy to discuss air defense needs and updated sanctions legislation aligned with the Trump administration.
“The road to ending this war, the road to peace, passes through Beijing more than it does [through] Washington, Kyiv, or Moscow.
China has an oversized influence. I’d like them to use their influence for the good of the world,” Graham said.
The bipartisan legislative package seeks to impose secondary sanctions on foreign nations or entities continuing energy transactions with Russia.
“We are very pleased with this significant progress and expect to roll out the legislation very soon,” said Senators Richard Blumenthal, Lindsey Graham, Jeanne Shaheen and Roger Wicker.
The sanctions framework aims to create legal mechanisms to pressure Moscow into official peace negotiations.
“We’ve reached an agreement with the White House on a version of the Russian sanctions bill that they will support.
It means it’s going to become law,” Graham said.
Meanwhile, the conflict caused civilian casualties on Friday when Russian forces dropped seven aerial bombs on Kramatorsk, according to regional governor Vadym Filashkin.
Domestic challenges also intensified for Kyiv as the National Anti-Corruption Bureau designated a former Energoatom official as a suspect in a major wartime energy corruption case involving millions in allegedly laundered funds.
