Russian authorities said more than 100 drones were destroyed in a massive overnight attack on the Nizhny Novgorod region on November 1, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Moscow of striking energy infrastructure in four Ukrainian regions overnight, leaving hundreds of thousands without power.
Gleb Nikitin, governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region, said an "industrial enterprise" in the Kstovo district had been hit by a "massive drone attack" causing "significant damage," and that no casualties had been reported so far. Ukrainian media reports said the strike had hit the Lukoil refinery at Kstovo as well as the combined heat and power plant at Novogorkovskaya.
The Russian announcement came less than 24 hours after the Ukrainian military said it had targeted the Russian state-owned Kombinat Kamensky chemical and defense enterprise in the Rostov region, an attack Zelenskyy confirmed had caused tens of millions of dollars' worth of damage. Russia has accelerated strikes on Ukraine's civilian populated areas and energy infrastructure ahead of winter, and Ukraine has been targeting Russian oil and gas sites in response.
Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram that Russian attacks had hit substations, transformers and power lines providing electricity to homes in the Dnipro, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr and Khmelnytsky regions. "Repair crews are working everywhere. As of now, hundreds of thousands of families remain without electricity," he said, adding that this week Russia had launched 1,940 strike drones, more than 1,580 CABs and 44 missiles, 36 of them ballistic. "The intensity of the strikes is very high, and the Russians are trying to take maximum advantage of the shortage of ballistic interceptors."
A statement from the Ukrainian military said Russian forces had attacked the country with 433 drones on November 1, fired from Orel and Shatalovo in Russia and from the Russian-occupied region of Donetsk. Ukrainian air defenses shot down 371 Russian Shahed drones, the military added, with no comment yet about casualties.
On the Ukrainian strike, the military claimed on October 31 that it had targeted Kombinat Kamensky with drones and Neptune coastal missile systems, with a “fire at a finished-products warehouse” confirmed and damage reported to four production workshops. The facility manufactures solid rocket propellant for ammunition used by Russian missile systems. Zelenskyy praised the military's “long-range sanctions” in the Rostov region, saying the Pantsir-S2 complex and the command and staff vehicle of the S-400 Triumph system were also hit, and that the total cost of the hit air defense facilities was about $70 million.
The Rostov region, which borders Ukraine, is a strategically important industrial and logistics hub in southwestern Russia. Earlier in October, Reuters reported that Russia had nearly finished building a major new base for launching jet-powered drones there in six weeks, citing satellite imagery.
Separately, the evacuation of residents from the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian city of Oleshky was completed as Moscow and Kyiv continued an agreed cease-fire in effect through November 1. The localized cease-fire was brokered by US first lady Melania Trump, and buses filled with civilians left the war-torn area for the first time in more than four years. Russian human rights ombudswoman Yana Lantratova said the humanitarian mission was concluding, and Zelenskyy, thanking the United States and Trump for their mediation, said those residents who wished to travel to Ukraine had crossed into the country on October 31.
With Russian and Ukrainian officials tipped to meet in Abu Dhabi in mid-November, a senior Russian official said President Vladimir Putin would respond if Zelenskyy wished to speak to him by phone. “I think he will, of course. Putin has never refused to talk,” aide Yuri Ushakov was quoted as telling Russian media, adding that Zelenskyy was welcome to come to Moscow, an offer the Ukrainian president has repeatedly rejected, arguing that Moscow is not an acceptable venue while Russia continues its full-scale war against Ukraine, now in its fifth year.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- Escalating mutual strikes on energy and defense infrastructure as winter approaches, with hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian households without power.
- Ukraine is increasingly striking targets deep inside Russia, including a state-owned missile propellant plant, signaling a retaliation campaign against Russian fuel and military sites.
- The completed Oleshky evacuation and the possibility of mid-November talks in Abu Dhabi offer a rare diplomatic channel amid the fighting.
Background
Russia has accelerated strikes on Ukrainian civilian areas and energy infrastructure heading into winter, a recurring pattern, while Ukraine has responded by hitting Russian oil and gas facilities and military targets across the border. The war is now in its fifth year. The localized Oleshky cease-fire, brokered by the US first lady, allowed the first civilian evacuations from the occupied city in more than four years.
Key Perspectives
Zelenskyy (Ukraine): Russia attacked energy infrastructure in four regions overnight, leaving hundreds of thousands without power, and is trying to take maximum advantage of a shortage of ballistic interceptors.
Gleb Nikitin (Nizhny Novgorod governor): an "industrial enterprise" in Kstovo was struck in a "massive drone attack" causing "significant damage," with more than 100 drones destroyed and no casualties reported.
Yuri Ushakov (Putin aide): Putin has never refused to talk and would respond if Zelenskyy called; Zelenskyy is welcome to come to Moscow, an offer the Ukrainian president has repeatedly rejected.
What to Watch
- The reported meeting of Russian and Ukrainian officials in Abu Dhabi in mid-November, and whether a Putin-Zelenskyy phone call follows.
- Whether Russian strikes on Ukraine's energy grid intensify further as winter sets in, and how Ukraine's counterstrikes on Russian fuel and defense sites develop.
- The status of the reported new Russian drone base in Rostov, which Reuters said was nearly finished by mid-October.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedMoscow reported a mass drone attack on the Nizhny Novgorod region.RFE/RL: “Russian authorities said more than 100 drones were destroyed in a massive overnight attack on its Nizhny Novgorod region on November 1”
- SupportedUkraine said Russian attacks hit four Ukrainian regions overnight.RFE/RL: “Zelenskyy said on November 1 that Russia attacked energy infrastructure in four Ukrainian regions overnight”
- SupportedZelenskyy said hundreds of thousands of families remained without electricity.RFE/RL: ““Repair crews are working everywhere. As of now, hundreds of thousands of families remain without electricity,” he said”
- SupportedThe Ukrainian military said it had targeted the Russian state-owned Kombinat Kamensky chemical and defense enterprise.RFE/RL: “On October 31, the Ukrainian military claimed it had targeted the Russian state-owned Kombinat Kamensky chemical and defense enterprise in the Rostov region”
- SupportedThe Oleshky evacuation was completed during a cease-fire brokered by US first lady Melania Trump.RFE/RL: “The evacuation of residents from the Russian-occupied southern Ukrainian city of Oleshky had been completed as Moscow and Kyiv continued an agreed cease-fire in effect through November 1. The localized cease-fire was brokered by US first lady Melania Trump.”
- SupportedNizhny Novgorod governor Gleb Nikitin said an “industrial enterprise” in Kstovo was hit by a “massive drone attack” causing “significant damage.”RFE/RL: “Gleb Nikitin, said that an "industrial enterprise" in the Kstovo district had been struck by a "massive drone attack" on November 1, causing "significant damage."”
- SupportedZelenskyy said repair crews were working everywhere and hundreds of thousands of families remained without electricity.RFE/RL: ““Repair crews are working everywhere. As of now, hundreds of thousands of families remain without electricity,” he said”
- SupportedZelenskyy said Russia had launched 1,940 strike drones, over 1,580 CABs and 44 missiles that week, 36 of them ballistic.RFE/RL: “he said, adding that this week along Russia has launched 1,940 strike drones, over 1,580 CABs, and 44 missiles of various types over Ukraine, 36 of which are ballistic.”
- SupportedThe Ukrainian military said Russia attacked Ukraine with 433 drones on November 1 and Ukrainian air defenses shot down 371 Shahed drones.RFE/RL: “A statement from the Ukrainian military said Russian forces attacked the country with 433 drones on November 1. ... Ukrainian air defenses shot down 371 Russian Shahed drones, the military added.”
- SupportedZelenskyy said the hit air-defense facilities had a total cost of about $70 million.RFE/RL: ““The total cost of the hit air defense facilities is about 70 million dollars.””
- SupportedBuses carrying civilians left the Oleshky area for the first time in more than four years.RFE/RL: “Earlier, buses filled with civilians left the war-torn area for the first time in more than four years without incident.”
- SupportedYuri Ushakov said Putin would agree to talk with Zelenskyy, saying, “Putin has never refused to talk.”RFE/RL: ““I think he will, of course. Putin has never refused to talk,” Putin aide Yuri Ushakov was quoted as telling Russian media on November 1.”