Nicolai Haugsted
Ukraine strikes at the heart of Russia’s war machine with new attacks
Russia’s war economy has long rested on a simple, brutal advantage: energy. Oil, fuel and exports have helped keep Vladimir Putin’s invasion running through sanctions, battlefield losses and mounting international pressure.
Now Ukraine is increasingly targeting that very foundation, says Hotnews.
A wave of Ukrainian drone strikes against Russian refineries, energy hubs and oil tankers has intensified pressure on Moscow, triggering fuel shortages, rising costs and growing frustration among Russian citizens.
Russia’s “gas station” problem returns
Reuters analyst Mike Dolan points to a famous remark made in 2014 by the late U.S. senator John McCain, who once described Russia as “a gas station masquerading as a country.”
Dolan argues that if that description still holds, reports of Russians facing fuel shortages are both strange and potentially highly significant for a war now deep into its fifth year.
Ukraine’s attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure have contributed to rationing, higher prices and public dissatisfaction. Russia has reportedly been forced to import fuel from countries including India and Kazakhstan, a striking situation for one of the world’s major energy powers.
According to Dolan, the economic mood inside Russia has darkened sharply.
“Not surprisingly, Russians are more pessimistic about their economic condition than at any point in the past 20 years, according to a poll published last month by the Gallup Institute.”
Pressure on the Kremlin
Fuel shortages have not yet visibly weakened Russia’s ability to wage war.
Moscow responded to recent Ukrainian attacks with some of its heaviest bombardments of Kyiv since the beginning of the invasion, followed by another strike on the Ukrainian capital days later.
Dolan suggests that the central question is whether domestic frustration over fuel shortages will push the war toward a faster conclusion or instead drive further escalation.
“But the question remains: Will Russian dissatisfaction with the lack of fuel help end the war more quickly or, on the contrary, intensify it, increasing the risk of new losses and further destruction of the region’s energy infrastructure?”
Investors may have become less focused on the war because of its duration, Dolan writes, but the conflict’s outcome remains hugely important for European security, NATO’s future and global energy supplies.
Tankers hit in the Sea of Azov
Ukraine has also expanded its campaign at sea.
For the second consecutive day, Ukrainian forces reportedly struck Russian oil tankers in the Sea of Azov that were attempting to deliver fuel to Crimea.
Robert “Magyar” Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, said eight Russian “shadow fleet” tankers were damaged during the night of July 7. He named several of the vessels, including “Venera-3”, “Sanar-1”, “Sanar-17”, “Klimena”, “Teti”, “Alexei Savrasov” and “Penelope”, while one more vessel had not yet been identified.
Ukraine’s special operations forces said drones struck and set fire to tankers around 140 meters long, each capable of carrying roughly 7,000 tons of cargo. Images released by Ukrainian sources appeared to show about 20 vessels moving from Russia toward Crimea.
Crimea faces mounting fuel strain
The attacks could have major consequences for Crimea, where fuel is already reportedly difficult to buy freely at petrol stations because of earlier Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries and supply routes.
According to The Moscow Times, if Kyiv’s information is accurate, the tanker attacks may have deprived Crimea of fuel equal to roughly one month of local demand.
Ukrainian drone operations against Russian oil tankers reportedly continued from Tuesday night into Wednesday, underlining Kyiv’s growing strategy of hitting the fuel network that keeps Russia’s war effort moving.
