Russian drone strike ignites major fire at Naftogaz facility in Poltava

Russia sent drones into Ukraine's Poltava region on Saturday, striking a facility belonging to state energy company Naftogaz Group and touching off a major fire. Naftogaz announced the attack on Telegram, saying its employees were in shelters at the time and emergency services rushed to the scene.

The company said it won't know the scale of the destruction until security conditions allow crews to assess the site. Acting chairman of the board Serhiy Fedorenko credited the response effort, saying: 'This week, attacks on Naftogaz infrastructure have been occurring almost daily. I thank the rescuers and employees of Naftogaz Group for their endurance and professionalism.'

The strike landed as other flashpoints kept the war's diplomatic track churning. President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters Ukraine doesn't buy SpaceX's explanation that recent Starlink disruptions were technical, telling Interfax-Ukraine the restrictions have lasted five days. Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, meanwhile, said Moscow won't dictate who sits on Europe's negotiating team in any peace talks, telling the Yanushev Telegram channel that such conditions would be 'absolutely wrong.'

Elsewhere, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said Saturday his country is sitting out the new round of European funding for Ukraine and won't hand over weapons or ammunition from its armed forces' stockpiles, citing an excessive deficit procedure and strained reserves. And Leonid Pasechnik, head of the disputed Lugansk People's Republic, said Ukrainian forces targeted rescuers clearing debris from an earlier strike on a gas station in Starobilsk, adding that the emergency workers took cover and no one was hurt.