Putin Dismisses Fuel Crisis as 'Not Critical' Despite Worsening Shortages
Russian President Vladimir Putin has shrugged off severe fuel shortages across Russia, describing Ukraine's increasing attacks on his country's oil refineries as 'not critical.' He dismissed ceasefire proposals and insisted the war will continue until his goals are met. The remarks came during a meeting with government officials last weekend, where Putin acknowledged the country was going through a 'difficult period' but downplayed the impact of Ukrainian strikes.
According to Chris Weafer, CEO of the consultancy Macro-Advisory, an estimated one-third of Russia's refining capacity has been cut off due to Ukrainian attacks. The strikes have inflicted lasting damage that will be costly to fix. Despite significant air defenses protecting Moscow, a top refinery in the capital has been hit twice, with the second strike on June 18 setting it ablaze and damaging key equipment that will reportedly take until the end of the year to repair.
Gasoline Production Drops by 17% as Rationing Introduced
Government statistics show that gasoline production in Russia has been reduced by roughly 17 percent to 850,000 barrels a day. Rationing has been introduced in many regions, and motorists have had to wait in line for hours to refuel. Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014, has faced the worst fuel shortages, with gasoline sales to individuals halted altogether.
Putin portrayed the Ukrainian strikes as an attempt to divide Russian society, halt Moscow's offensive, and force the Kremlin into negotiations on 'terms advantageous to our adversary.' He said, 'We will not give them that chance.' While Putin claimed that Ukraine's long-range strikes on Russian oil facilities 'have absolutely no effect on the situation at the front,' Western military analysts say mid-range strikes on the Russian army in recent months have hampered military logistics and slowed the tempo of its advance, leaving the battlefield in a stalemate.
Deadly Barrage on Kyiv Kills at Least 21
The Russian military unleashed a massive 11-hour barrage on the Ukrainian capital overnight into Thursday morning, killing at least 21 people. It was one of the deadliest attacks on Kyiv since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. Russia hit residential areas even as it claimed to be targeting military sites. By contrast, the vast majority of Ukrainian strikes in Russia have hit oil facilities, weapons factories, and other military targets.
Putin has rejected a truce that Kyiv and its Western allies have proposed, saying it would only give Ukrainian forces time to rest and regroup. He has made any ceasefire conditional on Ukraine's withdrawal from the part of the Donetsk region it still controls, a demand rejected by Ukraine. Putin has said that a final peace deal must oblige Ukraine to abandon its bid to join NATO, reduce its military, and protect Russian language and culture.
Putin Dismisses Ukraine's Ceasefire Offers
In an interview last Sunday, Putin claimed that Ukraine had offered to limit the fighting to the four regions that Russia annexed but never fully captured: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia. He said he rejected the proposal because it would free up Ukrainian forces from other areas where Russian troops have made inroads and let them focus on fending off the Russian attacks in the four southeastern regions. 'Faced with a catastrophic shortage of personnel, the armed forces of Ukraine apparently believe this could be their salvation,' Putin said. 'Saving the Kyiv regime is not part of our plans,' he added. The Kremlin said the proposal was made via confidential channels; Ukrainian officials have not publicly discussed any such proposal.
Putin also dismissed a Ukrainian proposal to mutually halt strikes deep into each other's territory, claiming that Russian attacks deep into Ukraine are 'much more powerful, sensitive and, frankly speaking, destructive.' A United Nations tally says more than 16,000 Ukrainian civilians have died in the war. Putin has responded to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's offer to meet by challenging him to come to Moscow, a non-starter to Ukraine.
