Ukraine extends its drone campaign, burning this Russian e-commerce warehouse to the ground

For the second time in recent weeks, Ukrainian long-range drones targeted a major warehouse belonging to Russia's largest online retailer, Wildberries, causing a devastating fire that reduced the structure to ashes. This incident occurred in Tambov region, southeast of Moscow, which is approximately 500 kilometers away from the Ukrainian border.

The previous attack on the same facility on July 18 resulted in the death of seven individuals, marking the beginning of Ukraine's aerial campaign against the Russian e-commerce giant. Wildberries, comparable to Amazon in terms of size and commercial importance, has been a consistent target of Ukraine's cutting-edge drone capabilities since the invasion began in February 2022.

Ukraine has struck dozens of Wildberries facilities across Russia, aiming to disrupt the Russian military's supply chain and weaken the Russian economy. Additionally, Ukraine has extended its drone campaign to oil facilities, which are vital components of the Russian economy. In another development, Ukrainian forces struck a Lukoil refinery in Kstovo, located in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region, east of Moscow.

The refinery, with an annual processing capacity of about 125 million barrels, was engulfed in flames following the attack. The ongoing attacks have prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin to decree that the state can temporarily take control of critical infrastructure facilities if private owners fail to safeguard them or rebuild damaged assets after Ukrainian drone strikes.