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<\/p>\nUKRAINE claimed it has struck a major Russian-controlled oil depot as a train carrying ammunition and fuel in occupied territory also exploded in a suspected sabotage attack.<\/p>\n
Dramatic scenes unfolded after a huge blast and fire at the oil facility in the occupied Donetsk region following intense shelling.<\/p>\n
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The exploded oil was intended for use by Russian troops, local reports claimed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There were four large oil tanks at the facility in the Budennovsky district.<\/p>\n
"It is difficult to assess the damage to the oil depot, but extensive fire indicates damage to the reservoir or underground storage,\u201d said a military Telegram channel report.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In a separate incident, pro-Kyiv partisans also blew up a train used to carry fuel and ammunition from annexed Crimea to Melitopol and Dniprorudne, both in the Zaporizhzhia region.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On its return journey, the train was used to convey\u00a0ore, grain and damaged equipment from the temporarily occupied territories.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a result of the controlled explosion, the railway and a locomotive with wagons were damaged,\u201d said the Ukrainian centre of national resistance.<\/p>\n \u201cThe explosion itself happened at 8am. The occupiers have surrounded the place of the explosion and are searching the surrounding area.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThanks to the heroes of the underground, the train finally completed its movement.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n A collage paid tribute to the partisans seen as responsible for disrupting Putin\u2019s grip on occupied territories.<\/p>\n This was the 11th alleged sabotage attack this year on Russian trains linked to Vladimir Putin\u2019s war, said the Ukrainians.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe current sabotage is far from the last,\u201d said a statement.<\/p>\n Russia\u00a0has not admitted to losing the key rail link.<\/p>\n It comes after a Russian fighter pilot barely escaped death after a rocket launcher fired into the sky as an Su-25 warplane flew overhead.<\/p>\n Extraordinary footage captured the hair-raising moment the\u00a0Putin\u00a0fighter flew at a low altitude and was nearly struck – by his own side.<\/p>\n The 13-second clip showed one rocket launch from a small machine on the ground, followed by many others fired in quick\u00a0succession.<\/p>\n Miraculously, the Su-25 managed to escape the relentless rockets and continue flying.<\/p>\n Pro-war telegram channel Two Majors said: "Our warriors are people of unbridled courage."<\/p>\n It is unclear where exactly the plane – a subsonic, single-seat, twin-engine Su-25 – was nearly hit in the Russia-Ukraine warzone.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, European Union leaders have agreed to open membership negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.<\/p>\n Ukrainian President\u00a0Volodymyr Zelensky has described it as a "victory for\u00a0Ukraine" and a "victory for all of\u00a0Europe" as the decision was announced by the president of the European Council, Charles Michel.<\/p>\n Zelensky tweeted: "This is a victory for\u00a0Ukraine. A victory for all of Europe. A victory that motivates, inspires, and strengthens."<\/p>\n The announcement came as a surprise to\u00a0Hungary, however, as the country has been vowing to block such a decision at a two-day meeting in Brussels,\u00a0Sky News\u00a0reported.<\/p>\n Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has since described it as a "bad decision".<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/newspress-collage-ms3jvvas5-1702580143441.jpg\")
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