Ukrainian drones struck two more warehouses used by the online retailer Wildberries, as well as a third in the Moscow region that killed five people as Russia and Ukraine continued exchanging cross-border strikes with US-mediated peace talks stalled.
Kyiv has been seeking to disrupt the operations of Wildberries, the Russian equivalent to Amazon, in recent weeks, claiming it is aiding the war against Ukraine by supplying goods that have military purposes.
Early on August 4, Wildberries' warehouses in the Tver and St Petersburg region were hit as Ukraine tries to bring the war, now in its fifth year, to ordinary Russians to put pressure on the Kremlin to renew peace talks.
A third warehouse in the Moscow region was also hit, leaving five dead and at least 10 others injured, according to Moscow region Governor Andrei Vorobyov.
"Several fires broke out in the industrial zone of Novoselki as a result of a drone strike. The largest was at a warehouse, where the open flames have already been extinguished," Vorobyov said.
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Wildberries: Ukrainian Drones Strike 'Russia's Amazon' Near St. Petersburg
According to media reports and Telegram channel ASTRA's OSINT analysis, Ukrainian drones also struck the Syzran oil refinery in Russia's Samara region, with geolocated footage showing black smoke rising from the facility.
The Rosneft-owned refinery processes 8.5 million tons of crude oil annually, accounting for more than 3 percent of Russia's total refining capacity.
In recent weeks, Ukrainian forces have struck more than a dozen warehouses belonging to Wildberries across multiple Russian regions.
The retailer has called the attacks, which have hit around 15 different company facilities, "acts of terrorism."
Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces (USF), said on social media that Ukrainian drones have attacked 15 logistics facilities belonging to Wildberries over the past three weeks. He added that 13 of the 15 warehouses had been destroyed by fire as a result of the attacks.
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces attacked Ukraine overnight with one Iskander-M ballistic missile and 136 attack drones.
According to Ukrainian officials, an 89-year-old woman was killed in Mykolaiv during the overnight drone attack, while seven other people, including children, were injured.
Heorhiy Reshetilov, head of the Mykolaiv regional military administration, shared videos and photos showing the aftermath of the overnight attack, including damage to a number of private homes.
Meanwhile in the Ukrainian city of Sumy, six Russian guided aerial bombs struck in a deadly barrage, killing two children and a woman, according to regional authorities.
"The girls were 5 and 10 years old. Their bodies were recovered from the rubble of their home," the regional head said.
"An unspeakable tragedy," he wrote on Telegram.
US Envoy: No Patriot Deal Yet
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for Ukraine's allies -- especially the United States -- to hasten deliveries of urgently needed Patriot air defense missiles and other weapons as Moscow ramps up air strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.
US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said late on August 3 that work with Ukraine and Europe on the joint production of air defense systems is ongoing, but a long-term agreement to produce missiles for Patriot air defense systems will not be concluded before this winter.
"We do not allow anybody but US manufacturers to make those in the United States," Whitaker said in an interview with Fox News, referring to the Patriot PAC-3 missiles capable of intercepting Russian ballistic missiles.
"There are co-production opportunities that we can pursue with the Ukrainians and with the Europeans to expand the industrial base and support the defense of Ukraine and Europe," the US diplomat added.
"A long-term production deal is not going to be in place by this winter," Whitaker said.
Having made little to no territorial gains along Ukraine's more than 1,200-kilometer front line this year, Moscow has stepped up its missile attacks on Ukraine as country faces severe shortages of air defense systems capable of intercepting high-speed ballistic missiles.
Last month, Zelenskyy said Kyiv and Washington had reached agreement on licenses for production of PAC-3 Patriot interceptors, adding that parts for the missiles were expected to arrive in the next few days.
However, Trump on July 31 downplayed suggestions that Washington was ready to grant Kyiv a license to produce Patriot missiles itself.
"These weapons are incredible. We have to be very careful about letting somebody build them," Trump told reporters at a Cabinet meeting at Camp David, adding that his administration has "not agreed" to that yet.
"We're talking about it. But it's a hard thing to give away that kind of technology," he said.