Russia's Leningrad region is to recruit reservists to form new units tasked with protecting critical infrastructure, including the Baltic Sea oil ports of Ust-Luga and Primorsk, from drone attacks. The announcement follows a series of Ukrainian drone strikes that have disrupted oil exports, a vital source of revenue for Moscow.
Governor Alexander Drozdenko said the units would be deployed to "the premises of enterprises and critically important infrastructure", though his statement did not directly mention Ukraine. Writing on Telegram, he added that a meeting of federal and security agencies had "decided that protection of the sky over the Leningrad Region against drone attacks must be strengthened and reinforced".
The move comes as Russia's state news agency RIA Novosti claimed that 11,211 Ukrainian drones were intercepted in March alone, nearly double the figure for February. Reservists joining the new units will be offered contracts ranging from two months to several years, according to Mr Drozdenko.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin said European countries were becoming more involved in the war in Ukraine, citing a warning from Russia's Defence Ministry about drone production sites across Europe and in Britain. The ministry published a list of factories it alleged manufacture drones or components, naming facilities in Britain, Germany, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, Israel and Turkey.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chair of Russia's Security Council, said on X that the list amounted to potential targets for Russia's armed forces. "When strikes become a reality depends on what comes next. Sleep well, European partners!" he wrote. Asked whether Russia was genuinely considering strikes on Europe, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "These countries are becoming increasingly directly involved in the conflict, in the war surrounding Ukraine. The details are set out in the Defence Ministry's statement."
