Russia has sharply reduced diesel exports to Africa following repeated Ukrainian drone attacks on its oil refineries, Russian pro-state media outlet RBC reported on March 13.
Russian diesel exports to African countries nearly halved in February, dropping from 1.27 million tons in January to 684,000 tons, according to a report by the Price Index Center research project reviewed by RBC.
Exports to Brazil fell by 41%, while deliveries to Turkey, Russia's largest diesel export market, declined by 12% to 1.13 million tons.
"The decline in exports is due to an increase in the number of incidents at refineries," the analysts said, referencing Ukrainian drone strikes.
On March 10, Ukrainian military intelligence confirmed it had struck the Novokuybyshevsk oil refinery in Russia's Samara Oblast. A day earlier, a Ukrainian drone reportedly hit an oil depot in Cheboksary, Chuvashia Republic — marking the first attack on the region.
Ukraine considers Russian oil infrastructure a legitimate military target, arguing that fossil fuel revenues fund Moscow's war effort.
Kyiv has systematically targeted Russian refineries, military sites, and logistics hubs to weaken Moscow's capacity to continue its full-scale invasion.
Volodymyr Ivanyshyn
