Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
“They are constantly taking steps that, frankly speaking, we should have probably foreseen,” Putin said.
Russian officials never expected Ukrainian drones to hit the country’s biggest online retail warehouses.
Speaking at a Business Russia gathering on October 15, Russian leader Vladimir Putin openly admitted that Moscow missed the threat, according to a report by Meduza.
He gave no specific figures on the total destruction.
“They are constantly taking steps that, frankly speaking, we should have probably foreseen, but we believed they wouldn’t think of doing this,” Putin said, according to a Telegram post from Meduza.
Targeting Russia’s “Amazon”
The Ukrainian campaign against the Russian e-commerce infrastructure began in mid-July, when several Wildberries facilities were struck by Ukrainian long-range attacks.
The unexpected strikes pounded shipping depots run by Wildberries, also called Russia’s Amazon, and Ozon, two commercial giants that millions of Russian shoppers use daily. These sprawling fulfillment hubs form the backbone of Russia’s domestic delivery network.
Before this, Ukraine had targeted Russian energy infrastructure in order to drain Putin’s war chest of revenue, as well as military sites such as plants for making drones and missiles.
In the same speech, Putin tried to downplay Ukrainian drone strikes against domestic oil facilities by insisting the destruction was tiny.
In his words, “They hit a few places, but nothing very significant.”
Battles in the rear
Kyiv views these deep drone operations as a direct answer to endless Russian strikes against Ukrainian towns and civilian power networks.
By hitting supply chain hubs, fuel depots, and transport routes far behind the front line, Ukraine aims to cripple the logistics feeding the invasion. Moscow felt the pinch immediately.
Just hours earlier, Russian forces had launched another massive assault across the border. Russian military units fired 39 ballistic missiles and over 120 attack drones into Kyiv and Kharkiv on the night of October 14, United24 Media reported.
The barrage slammed major power stations in both cities, including Combined Heat and Power Plant 4 and CHP-5. It left critical heating facilities badly damaged.
The blitz landed right after a brief diplomatic pause. Kyiv had halted its strikes on Russian oil refineries for two days to support a proposed energy ceasefire. Instead of pausing, Russian strikes battered gas and power sites across six regions, injuring 33 people. The destruction sparked outrage.
Ukrainian leaders are now calling for tougher global sanctions and more Patriot air defense batteries to guard their skies.
