Moscow, March 21 : The Russian Defence Ministry on Friday said Ukrainian forces have "deliberately blown up the Sudzha gas metering station" as they retreated from Russia's western Kursk region.

The facility, located several hundred metres from the Ukrainian border, has been under Ukrainian control since August 2024, the ministry said. Russia has recently regained control over Sudzha.

The Investigative Committee of Russia announced Friday that it has launched a criminal investigation into the explosion at the station. The committee said that Ukrainian servicemen deliberately detonated the facility on Thursday, causing significant damage.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said on Facebook that Russia's claims regarding Ukraine's shelling of the station are "groundless," and the station has been "repeatedly shelled by the Russians themselves."

The station was a major entry point for Russian gas exports to Europe via Ukraine until it ceased operations on January 1, following the expiration of a five-year transportation agreement, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Thursday, Russia's foreign ministry said that Ukraine had breached a proposed 30-day ceasefire on energy infrastructure by striking a Russian oil depot.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told Russia's Channel One that the United States, which had proposed the ceasefire, was responsible for holding Ukraine accountable for its actions.

Her comments came after a Ukrainian drone attack ignited a fire at an oil depot near the village of Kavkazskaya in Russia's southern Krasnodar region.

A statement released by local authorities on Thursday evening noted that efforts to contain the fire were ongoing.

US President Donald Trump held separate phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier this week. According to White House statements, Trump and Putin agreed that "the movement to peace will begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire," while Trump and Zelensky "agreed on a partial ceasefire against energy."

The Ukrainian side also accused Russia of violating its pledges. Hours after Putin's phone call with Trump, Zelensky said there had been "hits, specifically on civilian infrastructure," including a hospital in Sumy.

Late on Thursday, Russian forces launched a mass drone attack on Ukraine's Odesa, injuring three people and damaging an apartment building and a shopping center, according to the regional governor.

/IANS