Putin admits Ukrainian strikes driving Russian fuel shortages
The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, acknowledged that the country was suffering from “a certain shortage” of fuel in an interview published by the Kremlin on Sunday, after repeated Ukrainian strikes in their four-year war.
Kyiv calls the attacks fair retribution for Russia’s near-daily barrages on Ukrainian civilians and energy infrastructure since its February 2022 offensive.
“As for strikes against critical infrastructure in general, and energy infrastructure in particular, of course these attacks on our infrastructure facilities create problems, that’s obvious,” said Putin.
“Right now we’re observing a certain shortage, but it’s not critical.”
The main task now, he said, was to increase Russian anti-aircraft defence capacity and to ensure fuel supplies, particularly to Crimea.
The authorities in Russia-annexed Crimea on Friday declared an “emergency situation” over fuel shortages and power cuts triggered by Ukrainian attacks on its logistics chains and oil facilities.
Russia annexed the territory from Ukraine in 2014, a move not recognised by the vast majority of countries.
A few hours earlier, in a speech to the United Russia party congress, Putin had vowed to ensure security and overcome challenges as Ukraine steps up its retaliatory strikes inside Russia.
“Yes, we see the problems, we are aware of them and are responding to them, but we will certainly ensure the security of both the country and our citizens, as well as the inviolability of Russia’s borders,” Putin told party members.
“We will undoubtedly overcome all the challenges facing us today, including terrorist attacks on our territory and infrastructure facilities,” he added.
Putin’s speech came hours after a Ukrainian drone strike killed one person in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region and sparked a fire in a refinery, according to the regional governor, Veniamin Kondratyev.
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The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, called the hit part of the “operations that weaken Russia’s ability to wage this war”.
“The Slavyansk oil refinery in the Krasnodar region was hit – about 300km [185 miles] from the frontline. We also reached a refinery in the Yaroslavl region, approximately 700km [435 miles] from our border,” Zelensky said on X Sunday.
Last week, another Ukrainian attack caused a major fire at a refinery south-east of Moscow, shrouding the capital’s suburbs in plumes of thick black smoke.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
Vladimir Putin stated in a Kremlin-published interview that Russia is experiencing fuel shortages due to Ukrainian strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, though he characterized the situation as non-critical. Ukraine frames these attacks as legitimate retaliation for Russia's sustained bombardment of Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure since its 2022 invasion. Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, declared an emergency over fuel and power disruptions following Ukrainian attacks on logistics and oil facilities. In recent days, Ukrainian strikes damaged refineries in the Krasnodar region (185 miles from the frontline) and the Yaroslavl region (435 miles from Ukraine's border), killing at least one person and causing fires. Putin told the United Russia party that Russia would address these challenges and secure its borders, framing the strikes as terrorism while Ukraine characterizes them as operations that reduce Russia's military capacity.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, acknowledged that the country was suffering from “a certain shortage” of fuel in an interview published by the Kremlin on Sunday, after repeated Ukrainian strikes in their four-year war.
Kyiv calls the attacks fair retribution for Russia’s near-daily barrages on Ukrainian civilians and energy infrastructure since its February 2022 offensive.
“As for strikes against critical infrastructure in general, and energy infrastructure in particular, of course these attacks on our infrastructure facilities create problems, that’s obvious,” said Putin.
“Right now we’re observing a certain shortage, but it’s not critical.”
The main task now, he said, was to increase Russian anti-aircraft defence capacity and to ensure fuel supplies, particularly to Crimea.
The authorities in Russia-annexed Crimea on Friday declared an “emergency situation” over fuel shortages and power cuts triggered by Ukrainian attacks on its logistics chains and oil facilities.
Russia annexed the territory from Ukraine in 2014, a move not recognised by the vast majority of countries.
A few hours earlier, in a speech to the United Russia party congress, Putin had vowed to ensure security and overcome challenges as Ukraine steps up its retaliatory strikes inside Russia.
“Yes, we see the problems, we are aware of them and are responding to them, but we will certainly ensure the security of both the country and our citizens, as well as the inviolability of Russia’s borders,” Putin told party members.
“We will undoubtedly overcome all the challenges facing us today, including terrorist attacks on our territory and infrastructure facilities,” he added.
Putin’s speech came hours after a Ukrainian drone strike killed one person in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region and sparked a fire in a refinery, according to the regional governor, Veniamin Kondratyev.
after newsletter promotion
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, called the hit part of the “operations that weaken Russia’s ability to wage this war”.
“The Slavyansk oil refinery in the Krasnodar region was hit – about 300km [185 miles] from the frontline. We also reached a refinery in the Yaroslavl region, approximately 700km [435 miles] from our border,” Zelensky said on X Sunday.
Last week, another Ukrainian attack caused a major fire at a refinery south-east of Moscow, shrouding the capital’s suburbs in plumes of thick black smoke.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
Putin acknowledged in a Kremlin-published interview that Russia faces fuel shortages caused by Ukrainian strikes on critical infrastructure Putin stated the fuel shortage is 'not critical' Ukrainian strikes hit refineries in the Krasnodar region and Yaroslavl region in recent days Crimea declared an emergency situation over fuel shortages and power cuts Ukraine frames the strikes as fair retribution for Russian barrages on Ukrainian civilians and energy infrastructure since February 2022 Putin called the strikes 'terrorist attacks' on Russian territory and infrastructure Zelenskyy characterized the strikes as operations that 'weaken Russia's ability to wage this war'
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗
- Putin acknowledged Russia faces fuel shortages caused by Ukrainian drone and missile strikes on energy infrastructure
- Ukraine frames these attacks as retaliation for Russian strikes on Ukrainian civilians and energy systems since February 2022
- Crimea declared an emergency situation over fuel and power shortages; Putin vowed to strengthen air defenses and secure supplies
- Recent Ukrainian strikes hit refineries in Krasnodar and Yaroslavl regions, with Putin calling them infrastructure damage rather than critical threats