Vladimir Putin left red-faced as Ukraine drone strikes spark Russian petrol disaster
Panicked Russians are facing lengthy fuel queues as Ukrainian drone strikes spark a severe petrol crisis, handing Putin a humiliating blow
Vladimir Putin has been left rattled as panicked Russians face long fuel queues (Image: Getty Images)
Panicked Russians face long fuel queues as Ukrainian drone strikes spark a severe petrol crisis, shattering Vladimir Putin’s illusion that his bloody war isn’t hitting home. Relentless long-range drone attacks on oil depots and key refineries have left the country running on fumes, triggering massive shortages in Moscow.
BBC journalist Steve Rosenberg said he spotted a staggering 80 vehicles waiting in a single line at a petrol station in south-east Moscow.
One frustrated local reportedly told Rosenberg: “Last night I went to get petrol at 11pm. By midnight I’d reached the front of the queue. Then they shut the petrol station until 2am.”
Relentless long-range drone attacks on oil depots and key refineries have left Russia running on fumes
Another added: “I drove into Moscow yesterday from the province. It was empty petrol stations all the way. Everyone says there is a difficult situation in the country.”
Russian officials desperately blamed the massive queues on “unscheduled repairs at oil refineries” following Ukraine’s targeted strikes, reports the Express. However, internal reports reveal a far grimmer picture for the Kremlin.
Privately-owned Russian analytical newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta ran a scathing report titled “Is there a way out of the petrol crisis if infrastructure isn’t protected?”
Ukraine’s persistent strikes are hitting Russia where it hurts(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The paper said that it is “virtually impossible to pull the country out of a fuel crisis while unprotected infrastructure remains under constant attack”.
It added: “If an oil refinery suffers serious damage, repairs can take several months. Russian oil refining is therefore operating in a constant cycle of recovery from continuing Ukrainian attacks.
“However, there are signs that officials are beginning to think not only about repairing refineries but also about preventing damage in the first place.
“It is becoming increasingly difficult for government officials to explain why even basic passive protection has not been installed at key infrastructure sites.”
The chaos has delivered a blow to Putin, who was forced to admit that Ukraine’s persistent strikes are hitting Russia where it hurts.
While claiming official data shows “modest overall” but “positive” economic performance, Putin said: “Clearly, the pace of economic activity is being affected by a range of factors, including external pressure as well as terrorist attacks on industrial and infrastructure facilities.
“Naturally, such attacks have not – and could not – result in critical consequences. Yet, they do cause us harm – this is obvious, and we fully recognise and understand it.”
Despite the economic damage and growing public anger, the Kremlin has refused to backtrack on what it still stubbornly calls the “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Exposing the regime’s desperate propaganda effort, Andrei Kolesnikov, a columnist for independent outlet Novaya Gazeta, pointed out the massive “disconnect between people’s feelings and the description of reality by Vladimir Putin, the description of his personal reality in his head.”
