Ukraine has targeted two more warehouses belonging to Russia's largest online retailer, Wildberries, in a series of drone strikes aimed at disrupting the country's consumer economy. The company's co-founder and head, Tatyana Kim, confirmed the attacks occurred in Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk, both located in southern Russia.
Social media footage verified by Reuters depicted a large plume of smoke rising from the Krasnodar warehouse. According to the regional governor, the strikes resulted in the death of a young woman and injuries to three other individuals, who were receiving hospital treatment.
These attacks on Wildberries' significant warehouse network represent a new phase in Ukraine's strategy of deep strikes within Russia, intended to undermine Moscow's war efforts and bring the conflict closer to ordinary Russian citizens. Ukraine asserts that it is targeting companies and infrastructure that support the Russian military. President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the recent targets are logistics hubs involved in supplying Russian forces with drone components and other equipment. The Kremlin, however, has denied that Wildberries handles military supplies.
This is not the first such incident involving the retailer. A prior Ukrainian drone strike on Saturday killed eight Wildberries workers, caused fires, and disrupted the company's operations. In response to the latest attacks, Kim expressed her distress on Telegram, stating, "There are no words to describe all the feelings and emotions caused by the attacks on ordinary people, on our employees, on all of us who are simply doing our jobs."
The full extent of the damage and its impact on customers remains unclear. While some Muscovites interviewed by Reuters reported no immediate disruption to their Wildberries deliveries, one woman indicated she had switched to rival Ozon following the attacks. Another customer, Mikhail, noted that while the situation is worrying, he and his wife have come to accept such incidents as part of the current reality.
An e-commerce lobby group, AUREK, has requested the government to postpone tax payments for six months for businesses that have incurred losses due to these attacks.
Wildberries, which began as an online seller of apparel and has since expanded into a marketplace for third-party vendors, has not commented on the scale of the damage. Russia, meanwhile, has consistently targeted Ukraine's logistics hubs, energy system, and power grid throughout the conflict.