TOP HEADLINES

• The German Foreign Ministry will revoke the licenses of four of the five Russian consulates it announced in what is being described as a retaliatory measure against Moscow.

• Drones attacked two oil refineries just 65-80 kilometers of Russia's biggest oil export terminals, sparking a fire at one and causing no damage to the other, according to Russian officials. READ MORE BELOW

• At least five people were killed and 19 wounded in a night bombardment in Ukraine's Luhansk region, its Russian administrators said, blaming the Ukrainian army for the attack. READ MORE BELOW

• Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev described the UK as Moscow's "eternal enemy" and that any British officials who facilitated the Ukraine conflict could be considered legitimate military targets. This follows UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly saying Ukraine had a right to project force beyond its own borders.

• UN International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi wants Ukraine and Russia to respect five core principles to safeguard the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, suggesting he had not yet secured their agreement on protecting the facility.

• Washington is encouraging Kyiv by publicly ignoring the drone attack that struck several districts of Moscow on Tuesday, Russia's envoy to the U.S. said after President Vladimir Putin blamed Ukraine for the strikes.

• Russian designers and brands are helping the retail sector gradually recover from a turbulent 15 months of store closures and slumping demand, with new labels plugging the gap left by foreign rivals and shoppers tentatively returning.

• NATO's chief voiced guarded optimism on welcoming Sweden to the alliance with Türkiye still objecting to their inclusion. President Tayyip Recep Erdogan was voted in for a third term two days ago.

• Lithuania has imposed sanctions on 15 Russian citizens in connection with the jailing of Vladimir Kara-Murza, a leading opposition figure in Russia.

• The EU agriculture minister said it is necessary to extend restrictions on grain imports from Ukraine until at least the end of October, despite fierce opposition from Kyiv.

IN DETAIL

Russia's oil refineries attacked

Drones attacked two oil refineries just 65-80 kilometers (km) east of Russia's biggest oil export terminals on Wednesday, sparking a fire at one and causing no damage to the other, according to Russian officials.

A drone struck the Afipsky oil refinery in Russia's Krasnodar region on Wednesday morning, Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said.

The Afipsky refinery lies near the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk, one of Russia's most important oil export gateways. Novorossiisk, together with the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal, bring about 1.5 percent of global oil to market.

Another drone crashed into the Ilsky refinery, which lies around 70 km east of Novorossiisk, Russian state-owned news agency RIA reported.

There was no immediate information on who launched the drone, but Russia has accused Ukraine of increased attacks on targets inside the country, including on Moscow on Tuesday.

In a night bombardment in Ukraine's Luhansk region, at least five people were killed and 19 wounded, sad Russian administrators, blaming the Ukrainian army for the attack.

A poultry farm and temporary accommodation for workers were damaged in the attack on the village of Karpaty, 35 km west of the city of Luhansk, the authorities added.

Moscow did not specify whether the killed and wounded were civilians or military personnel, although they had listed four workers killed in an earlier toll.

"The enemy fired four rockets" from one of the HIMARS multiple launchers delivered to Kyiv by the U.S., the administration said.

The region of Luhansk, which neighbors Donetsk, is mostly occupied by the Russian army and is one of four Ukrainian territories Moscow claimed to have absorbed in September.

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