Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war with Ukraine has begun to backfire at home as Kyiv’s attacks on oil infrastructure are leading to anger over fuel rationing and concerns about business losses.
Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky began intensifying drone attacks on Russian oil refineries in mid-June as part of a campaign to raise the war’s stakes for ordinary Russians more than four years after Putin’s full-scale invasion of his country.
Thanks to more than a month of attacks on refineries, fuel depots, and warehouses hundreds of miles behind the front line—including in Moscow—Russia is facing a fuel crisis the likes of which have not been seen since Putin’s rise to power more than 25 years ago, NBC News reported.
Gas stations in many regions have taken the unprecedented move of introducing rationing schemes and restrictions, and social media has been flooded with videos of long lines and frustrated drivers.
Gas prices nationwide have risen by nearly 20 percent compared to June of last year, according to Russia’s Interfax news agency.
Some governors have called for regional officials and local businesses to work remotely, hold video calls, and walk and bike to save fuel.
Others have introduced QR codes to distribute gas and called for a stronger police presence at gas stations after one driver shot another over a dispute about the order in which the vehicles were refueled, NBC reported.
A lawyer from Nizhny Novgorod in western Russia told the outlet she and her husband had spent several hours waiting in gas station lines over the past few weeks.
“Some gas stations are closed, and those that are open don’t always have a full range of fuel types available. There are lines, though they have shortened slightly over the last couple of days,” the lawyer, identified only as Marina, said.
The war in Iran had already forced Russia to introduce a ban on gasoline exports, and now, the Kremlin has begun importing petroleum products, according to NBC.
The lines in some regions are not as long as they were during their early July peak, but Zelensky said last week that Ukraine is still targeting oil facilities.
Some farmers have expressed concerns about fuel supplies as they prepare for the fall harvest, according to NBC.
Those worries come as Putin is already facing anger from small business owners after Ukrainian drones destroyed more than $2 billion worth of inventory at warehouses owned by Wildberries, an online retailer that is Russia’s response to Amazon.
The Russian president has tried to downplay the crisis by saying the shortages are not as critical as local authorities have suggested, and has blamed panic buying for much of the chaos.
He has, however, been forced to admit that Ukrainian attacks on oil facilities “do create problems.”
Over the weekend, he canceled an appearance at Russia’s Navy Day parade over fears of Ukrainian strikes, and then ranted about a revenge fantasy to a group of sailors during a remote meeting.
