Ukrainian long-range drones struck a major warehouse belonging to Russia’s biggest online retailer for the second time in five weeks, causing a fire that burned it to the ground, local authorities reported on Wednesday.
The depot, located in the Tambov region southeast of Moscow—several hundred kilometers from the Ukrainian border—was previously hit on July 18, which resulted in seven fatalities. That initial attack marked the beginning of Ukraine’s aerial campaign, which has since inflicted repeated damage on the Russian e-commerce giant Wildberries. The company's significant size and commercial importance have drawn comparisons to Amazon.
Ukraine's advanced drone capabilities, developed since Russia's February 2022 invasion, have enabled strikes against dozens of Wildberries facilities across Russia in recent weeks. Ukraine asserts that goods sold by the company include equipment and technical components utilized by the Russian military. Furthermore, these attacks serve Ukraine’s war objectives by destabilizing Russians living far from the front lines and damaging the Russian economy.
Ukraine has also targeted oil facilities, which form a core part of the Russian economy as one of the world's largest energy producers.
Ukraine’s General Staff announced that its forces struck a Lukoil refinery in Kstovo, located in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region, overnight. A General Staff statement confirmed the facility was on fire following the attack; this site has an annual processing capacity of approximately 125 million barrels.
Nizhny Novgorod has been subjected to repeated Ukrainian targeting. Local Governor Gleb Nikitin verified the attack and stated that an unspecified "industrial facility" sustained damage, offering no further specifics.
These continuous barrages prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin to issue a decree on Monday allowing the state to temporarily seize control of critical infrastructure facilities if private owners fail to protect them from Ukrainian drone attacks or neglect to rebuild them after strikes. Analysts suggest this measure intends to force companies to cover their own security costs and restore damaged assets to operation, despite the associated financial burden.
Russia has targeted Ukraine using ballistic and cruise missiles, powerful glide bombs, and jet-powered drones, resulting in thousands of civilian deaths. Emergency services reported on Wednesday that a Russian strike on a residential building in the northern Chernihiv region killed one woman and a four-year-old child.
Ukraine has been launching hundreds of drones against Russia almost nightly, aiming to overwhelm air defenses. The Russian Defense Ministry stated that its forces shot down 426 Ukrainian drones over 15 Russian regions and illegally annexed Crimea overnight.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in a social media post on Wednesday that Ukraine struck Russian oil facilities, airfields, logistics sites, and infrastructure, referencing attacks within the preceding 24 hours; he did not provide target details.
Wildberries confirmed the overnight attack and the fire at its Tambov region depot, stating the facility was evacuated but providing no further information regarding the extent of the damage.
Tambov Governor Yevgeny Pervyshov reported that the fire completely destroyed the logistical center and injured two individuals: a 19-year-old man who suffered a concussion, and a 49-year-old woman whose finger was broken.
In another incident, Russia’s Lipetsk region, south of Moscow, saw two people killed and two wounded after a drone fell on a house and set it ablaze, according to the region's Governor Igor Artamonov.