Fresh Ukrainian Drone Strikes Hit Russian Warehouses, Leaving Five Dead

Five people were killed and six injured in a Ukrainian attack on a warehouse facility in the Moscow region, amid a broader wave of strikes targeting Russian e-commerce infrastructure.

Casualties and Multiple Strikes Reported

Five people were killed and six sustained injuries as a result of a Ukrainian attack on a warehouse facility in the Moscow region, Moscow Oblast Governor Andrey Vorobyov announced on Telegram on Tuesday, August 4. Warehouses near St. Petersburg in the Leningrad Oblast and in the Tver Oblast were also shelled, with Kyiv targeting a total of three warehouses during the night.

The Russian online sales platform Wildberries—one of the country’s two largest e-commerce platforms—reported that its warehouse in the Leningrad Oblast caught fire and workers were evacuated. The same company owns the warehouse attacked overnight in the Tver region. While it was not disclosed whether Wildberries also owns the warehouse shelled in Chekhov in the Moscow region, the company is known to have storage facilities there.

Samara Region Facility Destroyed

Ukrainians also carried out another attack in recent days on Wildberries facilities in the Samara Oblast. One of the company’s warehouses, spanning approximately 180,000 square meters, was almost completely burned down on Tuesday, acting regional Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Gurkov said a few hours after the attack during a government meeting. He added that practically only the administrative complex survived and all goods were destroyed.

Shifting Focus to E-Commerce Infrastructure

Kyiv is setting its sights on Russian e-commerce infrastructure. In recent weeks, the Ukrainian army’s drones have frequently targeted Wildberries warehouses located in various parts of Russia.

As the newspaper The Guardian reported, attacks on Russian e-commerce infrastructure represent a new phase in Ukraine’s long-range strike campaign. Following previous attacks on refineries and fuel infrastructure, Kyiv is now focusing on logistics networks in an attempt to undermine the sense of normalcy among Russians.

Political and Economic Impact

The British daily notes that Wildberries is particularly popular among lower-income Russians living outside Moscow and St. Petersburg, a demographic that forms a core part of Putin’s electorate. Its extensive network of distribution points extends into small towns and villages, where they have become a permanent fixture of daily life.

Equipment for Russian soldiers, including body armor and helmets, can also be purchased on the platform. Tatyana Kim, the CEO and co-owner of Wildberries, called the attacks on the company’s warehouses “acts of terror.” Kim is considered the richest woman in Russia, with her net worth estimated at $8.1 billion by Forbes magazine.