Druzhba Pipeline ‘Will Keep Exploding and Burning,’ Ukraine Says After New Dec. 1 Strike

Russia’s Druzhba oil pipeline was hit by another explosion on Monday, Dec. 1, according to Kyiv Post sources in Ukraine’s Military Intelligence (HUR).

The source said the strike took place near Kazynskiye Vyselki, along the Taganrog-Lipetsk section of the pipeline. A HUR official familiar with the operation said the blast was triggered by a remotely detonated explosive fitted with incendiary compounds to intensify the fire.

Local residents reported a powerful blast followed by bursts of light, with footage and messages surfacing on regional social media within minutes.

The Druzhba pipeline, one of the world’s largest oil pipelines, transports Russian crude to several EU countries. Despite sanctions, parts of the pipeline remain operational, allowing Moscow to generate billions in revenue to support its military campaign in Ukraine.

The report came as Kyiv escalates its campaign against Russia’s oil infrastructure and network, with sanction-evading oil tankers also becoming a target in the Black Sea in recent weeks.

The source told Kyiv Post that Kyiv will keep striking Russian oil infrastructure as its revenues fuel Moscow’s war effort.

“The Russian oil network, which funds the state-aggressor and its military-industrial complex, will keep exploding and burning until the enemy stops attacking Ukraine,” the person said.

Repeated strikes on the Druzhba pipeline

On Aug. 22, Ukraine struck Russia’s largest oil pumping station, part of the Druzhba pipeline system, in the city of Unecha (Bryansk region).

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Unecha, located about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Ukrainian border, is the biggest hub of the Druzhba system, owned by Transnefteprodukt. The facility channels oil through a 9,000-kilometer (5,592-mile) network and plays a key role in supplying Russia’s military-industrial complex.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó condemned the attack, marking an escalation in the diplomatic standoff between Kyiv and Budapest.

“News came that the Druzhba oil pipeline on the Russian-Belarusian border has been repeatedly attacked – for the third time in a short period of time. The supply of crude oil to Hungary has been stopped again.”

He called it “another attack on Hungary’s energy security” and “another attempt to drag us into war.”

Earlier, on Aug. 13, Ukrainian drones struck the Unecha pumping station. HUR sources told Kyiv Post at the time that the agency carried out the operation in cooperation with other military units.

Following the strikes and despite an EU plan to phase out Russian energy, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban proclaimed that Budapest will keep buying Russian oil during his meeting with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin on Nov. 28.