KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian forces struck Russia's major Ufa oil refinery for the second time in a week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday.
Almost daily long-range attacks on Russian oil facilities have created a fuel crisis and heaped political pressure on the Kremlin as its all-out invasion of Ukraine stretches into its fifth year.
The Ufa refinery is one of Russia’s largest producers of lubricants and is located more than 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) from Ukraine, Zelenskyy said on social media.
Ukraine also struck a plant producing missile components in Russia’s Penza region southeast of Moscow, some 500 kilometers (300 miles) from Ukraine, Zelenskyy said.
Russian officials did not confirm the strikes, which could not be independently verified. The Russian Defense Ministry reported intercepting 179 Ukrainian drones over 16 Russian regions, the annexed Crimea and waters of the Azov and the Black Sea.
Penza Gov. Oleg Melnichenko said only that downed drone debris damaged a power line and fell on a building under construction.
Ukraine’s domestically developed and manufactured drones and missiles have been hammering Russian oil facilities, including refineries, terminals, storage depots and pipeline pumping stations, for months.
Many regions of Russia, one of the world’s biggest energy producers, have introduced fuel rationing.
Ukraine has developed new weaponry and in recent months has gained an edge, according to Western officials. Its strikes on supply routes behind the front line have robbed the Russian army of momentum on the battlefield, officials and analysts say.
“Russians now have great problems with delivering infantry to the front line and supplying it,” Ukrainian Minister of Defense Mykhailo Fedorov said Wednesday.
Ukraine has become a provider of military technology sought by countries around the world, especially drones.
With European countries fearing what Moscow’s territorial ambitions might lie beyond Ukraine, leaders have described Kyiv as a bulwark against Russian advances.
Ukraine is “becoming a security provider for the whole of Europe,” Swedish Minister of Defense Paul Jonsson said in Kyiv, where he held talks with Fedorov.
Ukraine signed an agreement on Tuesday for Sweden to provide Kyiv with Gripen fighter jets. They will help Ukraine stop Russian aircraft carrying powerful glide bombs, Fedorov said.
Jonsson said European countries want Ukraine to be integrated into Euro-Atlantic defenses, although Ukraine’s NATO membership has been a contentious issue and likely will be discussed at an alliance summit in Turkey next week.
“The sooner it happens, the better it is for you, the better it is for our security and prosperity as well,” Jonsson told a press conference.
Ukraine also wants to join the European Union, though the process could take years. Zelenskyy arrived Wednesday in Ireland, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency.
“Ukraine proves every day that it deserves to be an equal partner of our common European home. And we hope that during Ireland’s presidency of the EU Council, we will be able to achieve tangible progress on the path to membership and open all negotiations clusters,” Zelenskyy said.
Russian long-range attacks on Ukraine continued, with three civilians reported killed Wednesday.
A Russian drone struck a bus in the southern Kherson region, killing two people and injuring six others, regional head Oleksandr Prokudin said.
A 43-year-old woman was killed and three were injured, including a 35-year-old pregnant woman, when Russia attacked five gas stations in the central Dnipropetrovsk region overnight, according to regional authorities.
Russian forces have increasingly targeted Ukrainian gas stations.
Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Ukraine's Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, left, and Sweden's Defense Minister Pal Jonson hold a press conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, July 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
In this image made from video provided by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, Russian TOS-1 Solntsepyok heavy flamethrower rocket launcher fires towards the Ukrainian positions. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — France's fearsome foursome of Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola leaves opponents exclaiming: Sacré bleu!
“Their four up front is the best in the competition by far,” Norway coach Ståle Solbakken said.
France became the first nation to score three or more goals in five consecutive World Cup matches when it beat Sweden 3-0 Tuesday and advanced to a round of 16 match against Paraguay this weekend. Seeking to reach their third straight World Cup final, Les Bleus are a favorite to dethrone defending champion Argentina.
“There is something that we cannot hide, that we have a lot of quality in the team," French midfielder N’Golo Kanté said. ”But I think it’s the same for many other teams. We cannot see ourselves too beautiful or too strong."
After defeating Croatia for the 2018 title, France lost to Argentina on penalty kicks in the 2022 final. Les Bleus are 4-0 in this year's tournament, outscoring opponents 13-2.
“We always have to be more and more demanding because the opponents that we’re going to face are going to be demanding,” France coach Didier Deschamps said. “We need to fine-tune things and transform some negative points. Even though we didn’t have a lot of consequences, we did concede two goals.”
Mbappé is tied with Argentina’s Lionel Messi with a tournament-high six goals after getting his third brace Tuesday. Dembélé is tied for fourth with four goals.
Olise leads with five assists, while Mbappe and Dembele have two apiece. Barcola has a goal and two assists.
Mbappé scored 18 goals in 18 World Cup games, one behind Messi’s career record of 19 in 29 matches.
“I know that I do have qualities but I do have to show them on the largest stage that is the World Cup,” Mbappé said.
France is using a 4-2-3-1 formation and Deschamps allows freedom to be fluid.
“They come in different positions. They’re not static,” Swedish forward Viktor Gyökeres said. “They know each other well in how they move and their connection between each other.”
Captain of France’s 1998 champions, Deschamps took over as manager in 2012 and announced in January he will retire this summer. The victory over Sweden was his record 18th as a World Cup coach.
Les Bleus scored 14 goals over seven games in winning the 1998 World Cup, 12 when it captured its second title in 2018 and 16 four years ago.
“We’re very much more offensive than in 2018 and in 2022,” Mbappé said through a translator. “It’s the continuity of what we started to build throughout Didier Deschamps’ tenure over the last 14 years. You can see the evolution, his personal touch, and the arrival of a lot of young talent.”
France has overtaken Argentina for No. 1 in FIFA's rankings. Its four wins have come against teams currently ranked 18th (Senegal), 63rd (Iraq), 21st (Norway) and 37th (Sweden).
Paraguay, its next opponent Saturday, is 34th. Potential quarterfinal opponents include Morocco (sixth) and Canada (30th). Spain (No. 3) looms as a semifinal opponent.
Sweden coach Graham Potter proclaims France is the best team he's seen in the tournament.
“Because of the players in the wide areas, sometimes you have the double up on them because they could just beat you in 1-v.-1 situations,” he said. “And then they’ve got not a bad striker in the middle. So you’ve got problems here and you’ve got problems here. And then it can also build up with good control, strong center backs, so direct football isn’t easy against them either."
France is bidding to become just the third nation to reach three straight World Cup finals after Germany (1982-90) and Brazil (1994-2002).
“We have really good memories, also bad ones with what happened the last time that we played the World Cup,” said midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni, a member of the 2022 team. “Everybody is ready to fight and to give everything to make sure that all the French people are going to be proud of us.”
See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here
France's Kylian Mbappe (10) celebrates scoring their third goal with Michael Olise (11) during the World Cup round of 32 soccer match between France and Sweden in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)
-France's Kylian Mbappe (10) celebrates their first goal with Ousmane Dembele, left, during the World Cup round of 32 soccer match between France and Sweden in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
