We are not the priority for today. That's why I am afraid.
In the long contest between endurance and attrition, Ukraine has opened a new front — not on the battlefield, but in the global economy — striking deep into Russia's oil export infrastructure while its president travels the Middle East seeking partners in a world where every crisis reshapes the last. The strikes on Novorossiysk and Primorsk are not merely tactical; they are a message that the cost of war will be made visible in Russian balance sheets and broken pipelines. Yet even as Ukraine presses this advantage, President Zelenskyy confronts a harder truth: that the attention of great powers is finite, and a war in one corner of the world can quietly drain the lifelines sustaining another.
- Ukrainian drones struck Russian oil terminals at Novorossiysk and Primorsk in rapid succession, igniting fires visible from satellite and knocking out power to nearly half a million Russian households in a single night.
- The human toll is mounting on all sides — one killed in Belgorod, a cargo ship sunk in the Sea of Azov with one dead and two missing, and civilian infrastructure across occupied eastern Ukraine left dark.
- Zelenskyy sounded a public alarm from Istanbul: US attention is drifting toward Iran, Patriot missile deliveries are thinning, and Ukraine fears it is no longer Washington's first priority.
- The Iran crisis is compounding Ukraine's vulnerability in a second way — Hormuz closure has lifted global oil prices, funneling unexpected revenue to the Kremlin precisely when sanctions were beginning to bite.
- Rather than waiting passively, Zelenskyy is repositioning Ukraine as a security partner for Gulf states, offering drone technology and maritime expertise in exchange for anti-ballistic missiles and strategic relevance.
On a Sunday night in early April, Ukrainian drones hit the Sheskharis oil terminal at Novorossiysk on the Black Sea, sending fires across the facility that were captured on video and confirmed by satellite. It was part of a coordinated, accelerating campaign: over the preceding two weeks, Ukraine had struck the Baltic port of Primorsk three times and hit a Lukoil refinery near Kstovo nearly a thousand kilometers inland. Russia claimed its air defenses downed 148 drones in a single three-hour window, but the damage was done — power cut to nearly half a million households, an apartment building struck in Novorossiysk, one person killed in Belgorod.
What distinguishes this phase of the campaign is its economic logic. Russian military bloggers, ordinarily loyal to the Kremlin, have begun acknowledging openly that the repair burden is severe — replacement parts blocked by sanctions, air defenses unable to stop the drones, and infrastructure that will take significant time and money to restore. Ukraine is not just destroying facilities; it is imposing compounding costs on a state already stretched by war.
The human toll extended to the Sea of Azov, where a cargo ship carrying wheat sank after a drone strike on Friday. One crew member died and two went missing before survivors reached shore. Ukraine maintained it only strikes vessels with legitimate military purpose.
While the drones flew, President Zelenskyy was in the Middle East — meeting Syria's new president in Damascus, then speaking to journalists in Istanbul — and his message carried unmistakable anxiety. American focus, he warned, was shifting toward a potential conflict with Iran, and with it, the flow of critical weapons. Patriot air defense missiles were arriving in smaller quantities. "We have to recognise that we are not the priority for today," he said. "That's why I am afraid a long war will give us less support."
Zelenskyy also traced a geopolitical circuit that few had articulated so plainly: Iran's threatened closure of the Strait of Hormuz had pushed oil prices upward, delivering a revenue windfall to Russia at the very moment sanctions were tightening. Crises, he implied, do not stay in their lanes — they feed one another.
But Zelenskyy's tour was also an act of strategic repositioning. He offered Gulf states something concrete: Ukraine's battlefield-tested drone technology, sea drone systems, and hard-won expertise in protecting maritime corridors — lessons learned securing Black Sea shipping lanes under fire. In exchange, he sought anti-ballistic missiles and new partnerships. The Strait of Hormuz crisis, he suggested, was not only a threat to Ukraine's support — it was also an opening.
On a Sunday night in early April, Ukrainian drones struck the Sheskharis oil terminal at Novorossiysk, a major Black Sea port in Russia's Krasnodar region. Video footage circulating online showed a large fire consuming the facility. It was one of several coordinated attacks on Russian oil infrastructure that night, part of an intensifying campaign that has accelerated dramatically over the past two weeks. By Monday morning, Russia's military claimed its air defences had shot down 148 Ukrainian drones in a three-hour window. The strikes also knocked out power to nearly half a million households across Russian territory. In Belgorod, near the border, one person was killed. An apartment building in Novorossiysk was hit.
The Institute for the Study of War documented a clear shift in Ukrainian strategy. Over the past fourteen days, Ukraine has concentrated its drone attacks on Russian oil export infrastructure, particularly the Baltic Sea port of Primorsk and facilities in Leningrad oblast. On the night of April 4th and 5th, Primorsk was struck for the third time in two weeks. The same night, Ukrainian forces hit the Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez refinery near Kstovo, roughly a thousand kilometers away, igniting fires that showed up on NASA's satellite monitoring system. The regional governor acknowledged the damage to oil company facilities.
What makes these strikes strategically significant is not just the immediate damage but the cascading costs of repair. Russian military bloggers, typically sympathetic to the Kremlin, have begun complaining openly about the burden. Damaged infrastructure will take time and money to restore, they noted. Replacement of lost ships would be difficult. The underlying problem, these bloggers acknowledged, is that international sanctions have cut off access to critical parts needed for repairs, and Russian air defences have proven unable to stop the Ukrainian drones.
Meanwhile, the human toll continued to accumulate. In Crimea, the port city of Sevastopol endured four drone attacks on Sunday alone, with seven drones intercepted in one wave. In Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine, repair crews worked to restore power to Donetsk and Makiivka after Ukrainian strikes. A cargo ship carrying wheat sank in the Sea of Azov after a Ukrainian drone attack on Friday, according to Russian-installed officials. One crew member died and two went missing before the survivors reached shore on Sunday. Ukraine disputed the characterization, saying it only targets vessels with valid military objectives.
While drones burned Russian oil terminals, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in the Middle East, meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus and speaking to journalists in Istanbul. His message was urgent and tinged with anxiety. The United States, he said, was becoming distracted by the possibility of a prolonged conflict with Iran. As American attention and resources shifted toward the Middle East, Ukraine's access to critical weapons systems was tightening. Patriot air defence missiles, essential for countering Russia's relentless daily barrages, were arriving in reduced quantities. "We have to recognise that we are not the priority for today," Zelenskyy told the Associated Press. "That's why I am afraid a long war will give us less support."
Zelenskyy also articulated a strategic calculation about the Iran situation that benefited Moscow. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran had driven up global oil prices. Higher prices meant higher revenues for Russian oil exports—a windfall for the Kremlin at a moment when it needed cash to sustain its war effort. Sanctions had been slightly eased on Russian oil to manage global energy markets. "Russia gets additional money because of this, so yes, they have benefits," Zelenskyy said. It was a reminder that geopolitical crises do not exist in isolation; they feed and amplify one another.
Zelenskyy's Middle East tour was not purely defensive. He positioned Ukraine as a potential security partner for Gulf Arab states threatened by Iran. Ukraine could share its experience and technology—interceptor drones, sea drones, systems developed with American and European funding. In exchange, Gulf countries could provide Ukraine with anti-ballistic missiles. Zelenskyy also offered Ukraine's hard-won expertise in protecting maritime corridors, gained from years of securing shipping lanes in the Black Sea. He suggested Ukraine could help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, turning a regional crisis into an opportunity for partnership and leverage.
Notable Quotes
We have to recognise that we are not the priority for today. That's why I am afraid a long war will give us less support.— President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in an exclusive interview with the Associated Press
Russia gets additional money because of this, so yes, they have benefits.— Zelenskyy, on how Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz boosts Russian oil revenues
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why is Zelenskyy suddenly focused on the Middle East when the war in Ukraine is still active?
He's not abandoning Ukraine—he's trying to secure alternative sources of weapons and support because he sees American attention shifting. If the US gets pulled into a longer conflict with Iran, Ukraine loses leverage and aid.
And the oil strikes? Why intensify those now?
They're directly connected. Higher oil prices from Iran's actions boost Russian revenues. By hitting Russian oil infrastructure, Ukraine is trying to offset that windfall and degrade Moscow's ability to fund the war.
Russian bloggers are complaining about repair costs. Does that mean the strikes are actually working?
Yes, but with a caveat. The damage is real and costly, but Russia can still function. The real constraint is sanctions—they can't get the parts to fix things quickly. That's what makes the bloggers' complaints significant. They're admitting the system is breaking down.
What about the cargo ship that sank? That seems like a different kind of target.
Ukraine says it only hits ships with military purpose. Russia claims it was just carrying wheat. The disagreement matters because it signals how the war is expanding into economic warfare—food supplies, shipping lanes, civilian infrastructure all becoming contested.
Is Zelenskyy's Middle East strategy realistic? Can Gulf states really replace American support?
Not replace it entirely. But they can fill gaps. Anti-ballistic missiles, drone technology, diplomatic weight in global forums—these matter. And if the US does get distracted, having other partners becomes essential for survival.
What happens if the Iran situation escalates further?
Ukraine's worst case: American military aid dries up, oil prices spike even higher, Russia's revenues surge, and Kyiv is left with fewer weapons to defend against Russian barrages. That's why Zelenskyy is moving now, before the situation hardens.