Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 29
Zelenskyy Orders 1,000 Daily Long-Range Drone Strikes on Russia as Fuel Output Falls to 70%
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 29

Zelenskyy Orders 1,000 Daily Long-Range Drone Strikes on Russia as Fuel Output Falls to 70%

3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 29

Summary

  • 1,000 strikes a day is Zelenskyy’s new target for Ukrainian long-range drone attacks on Russia, up from about 300, which he said the military had been ordered to deliver.
  • 70% of domestic consumption is all the gasoline Russia was producing by late August, according to industry sources, after drone attacks shut major refineries in Perm, Nizhny Novgorod and Yaroslavl.
  • Fuel shortages have returned in Russian regions after a brief easing in late July, and Rostov declared a state of emergency Friday over port closures and shipping disruptions that left farm products backed up.
  • 90% of food logistics used by Ukrainian retail chains has been destroyed by recent Russian strikes, Kyiv said, even as Ukraine reported 14.6 billion cubic metres of gas in storage for winter.
  • The escalation comes as both sides intensify attacks on economic targets, while western officials say Russia is losing about 6,000 more troops a month than it can recruit.

Insights

How will the world cope when Ukraine's unprecedented 1,000-a-day drone swarm permanently cripples Russia's fuel system and Black Sea food exports?
Could targeted drone strikes on specialized Russian oil refineries trigger an irreversible collapse of their domestic fuel supply?
With global food markets teetering, will the escalating Black Sea shipping blockade spark a worldwide supply crisis this winter?