Ukrainian Drones Hit Wildberries Logistics Centers in Southern Russia Again

In recent days, Ukraine had also set fire to Wildberries logistics centers in the Moscow region and in the Tambov region. A total of eight people died, and dozens were injured. In the attack on the Wildberries warehouse in Krasnodar alone, ten people were injured according to Governor Veniamin Kondratyev; an initial count had spoken of three injured. In Nevinomyssk, the governor of the Stavropol region, Vladimir Vladimirov, spoke of five injured in the fire. In Armavir, one person was killed in an attack on an oil depot.

Reactions from Moscow

The Kremlin rejected the claim that the Wildberries warehouses were used to supply the Russian military. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday — only days after the deadly attacks — that the situation was "not simple" for the retailer and its customers. At the same time, he said: "The Kyiv regime continues its strikes against civilian objects, therein lies the terrorist nature of the Kyiv regime." Russian investigators accused Ukraine of shelling civilian objects with terrorist attacks.

According to research by Deutschlandfunk, Wildberries offers, among other things, cameras and propellers for FPV drones, anti-drone blankets, and flak vests. In addition, fiber-optic cable drums of about ten kilometers in length produced in China can be ordered on wildberries.ru, which are used for fiber-optically controlled drones. Such drones are considered a particular threat near the front because they cannot be electronically jammed.

Research on Drone Components

The Ukrainian president again justified the attacks as part of the defense struggle against the Russian war of aggression. Ukraine has been defending itself against Moscow's war of aggression for more than four years — also with drone attacks on Russian targets. Zelensky claimed that goods subject to Western sanctions were stored there, which could be used for both civilian and military purposes. According to his information, a tanker and four dry cargo ships were also hit in the Black Sea and the neighboring Sea of Azov.

The newspaper "Kommersant" reported, based on expert estimates, that about seven percent of Wildberries' warehouse capacity is now unusable. The initial damage from the attacks on Wildberries facilities was estimated in reports at about 550 million euros to over one billion euros. Many small and medium-sized businesses use the logistics centers as depots for their goods and pay rent to Wildberries, and many of them now see their livelihoods threatened.

Investigations and Consequences

Russia's Investigative Committee announced the opening of a proceeding for a "terrorist attack." Investigations are being conducted into the "attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces on the logistics centers in Krasnodar and Nevinomyssk." The Guardian reported on Tuesday about another attack on a Wildberries location, the Yuzhniye Vorota industrial park. Russia had also attacked logistics centers in Ukraine.

Wildberries is considered Russia's largest online retailer and functions for Russian private customers outside Russia in a similar way to Amazon. Ukraine has been attacking oil refineries and military factories in Russia with long-range drones and cruise missiles for months.