The reality of the war in Ukraine is indeed shifting for ordinary people inside Russia due to an escalation in long-range drone and economic targeting.
Recent Ukrainian strikes have expanded beyond energy infrastructure to hit major commercial distribution hubs and retail networks deep inside Russian territory.
T-84 Tank from Ukraine War. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Ukraine Tanks. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
The strikes on eight Wildberries warehouses since July 18, Russia’s equivalent of Amazon, have brought Moscow’s war on Ukraine even closer to home by disrupting the lives and livelihoods of ordinary Russians.
And the Ukrainian campaign of economic warfare that has seen numerous long-range drone strikes on oil and gas refineries that have caused long lines at the pump across Russia is making the issues for civilians even worse.
“Our Business Went Up In Smoke”
The attacks are part of an ongoing tit-for-tat escalation. However, Russian citizens are becoming increasingly aware of what life has been like in Ukraine for the past several years.
CNN quoted a fashion retailer who said, “About 40 percent of our business went up in smoke.
“Of course, compared to human lives, it is just money. The most important thing is that our loved ones and we are safe and sound. We had never stored such a large volume of products in the Wildberries marketplace warehouses.
“However, due to new requirements, we had to urgently move the stock from our own warehouse, repackage it, and ship it to Wildberries.”
The Guardian interviewed a woman named Maria who makes a living making handmade postcards and lost about $8,000 of her products when drones struck Wildberries’ warehouse in Elektrostal, 36 miles east of Moscow. Just a few days later, she lost her remaining goods when a warehouse in Krasnodar, southern Russia, was hit.
“How can you run a business when all your company’s assets just go up in flames?” she asked.
She added, “I’m raising a child on my own, and I’ve lost everything. How am I supposed to stay calm? Yesterday you had a peaceful, normal life. You could make plans. Today I have nothing.”
Tatyana Mikhailova could only watch as her entire stock of 4,000 fur coats, bought months in advance for the winter season, burned in the fire of the Wildberries warehouse attack.
“It’s not just a warehouse that’s burning,” Mikhailova said in a video she posted on Instagram. “It’s the time you’ve invested, the immense stress you’ve endured, your money, and your last bit of hope. All I feel is emptiness.”
Some Citizens’ Anger Is Misplaced
A 50-year-old woman identified only as “Anna” stated that Ukraine’s attacks have only “made people angry.”
“This Ukrainian tactic is not leading to peace; even in my entourage, people are getting angrier and say that if that’s their way, then we should continue.”
Another Russian citizen, a 30-year-old cashier in Saint Petersburg, named Svetlana, said she was “frightened” by the Ukrainian drone strikes and that “everything is getting worse”.
She added that Ukraine was to blame: “Of course I want peace, but you see what they (Ukrainians) are doing.”
However, these Russian citizens have not seen their own government’s attacks targeting Ukrainian citizens and civilian infrastructure since the invasion began in 2022.
The Kremlin’s censorship actively conceals the realities of the war in Ukraine through strict criminal laws, the blocking of independent media, and advanced digital controls.
Russian Civilians Don’t Get Much Sympathy From Ukraine
Kateryna Bohuslavska, whose X account handle is “Kate from Kharkiv” – said, “Yet another flood of videos from Russians weeping over the ‘shock’ and ‘unfairness’ of strikes on a Wildberries warehouse.
“It doesn’t cross their minds how unfair it felt when we were just living our lives, bothering no one, in our own country and our own homes, right up until their missiles started tearing our cities apart on a chilly winter morning.”
Anton Gerashchenko, a Ukrainian social media influencer, said Russians should blame Putin and not Ukrainians.
“Russians found out their country is waging a war. The next step is for them to realize who is responsible for all the damage caused to Russia (Putin),” he posted on his X account.
“The Psychological Effect Is Significant”
Olga Tokariuk, a non-resident fellow with the Center for European Policy Analysis, said that Ukraine’s recent successes against Russia are having an effect.
“While the economic effect is not enough to stop the funding of Russia’s war machine, the psychological effect is significant,” she said.
“The war now feels close to home for people in Russia, and Ukraine has shown the US it indeed has some cards. President Trump acknowledged the effectiveness of these strikes at his meeting with President Zelenskyy at the NATO summit, and admitted it’s an escalation that can bring the end of the war closer.
Meanwhile, Russia, in a tone deaf case of hypocrisy, accuses Ukraine of war crimes for its strikes on the warehouses.
“The Kyiv regime continues to strike civilian targets.
That is the terrorist nature of the Kyiv regime,” Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday, conveniently ignoring that Moscow has attacked civilians and civilian infrastructure for over four and a half years.
About the Author: Steve Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri is a National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing on defense, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications
