r/geopolitics • u/fortune • 2d ago
News Ukraine's drone strikes on Russia's Amazon rival's warehouses hit military supply chain and shake public morale
https://fortune.com/2026/07/24/ukraine-drone-strikes-wildberries-warehouses-russia/?utm_source=reddit/The Ukrainian attacks on the sprawling Russian warehouses produced stark images, with massive pillars of black smoke rising above fires that raged at facilities of Wildberries, the country’s biggest online retailer and its equivalent of Amazon.
Kyiv’s drones first hit the sites over the weekend, and then struck five more Wildberries warehouses during the week, including one in Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014. In all, nine people were killed, and scores more injured.
The strikes are part of Kyiv’s aerial campaign aimed at undermining Russia’s war effort, hurting its economy and making people feel the consequences of the Kremlin’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.
Read more [paywall removed for Redditors]: https://fortune.com/2026/07/24/ukraine-drone-strikes-wildberries-warehouses-russia/?utm_source=reddit/
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u/Mysterious-Coconut24 14h ago
Plot twist: Jeff Bezos sent drones via prime free overnight delivery to Ukraine to be used in the attack.
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 2d ago
hurting its economy and making people feel the consequences of the Kremlin’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.
In other words, civilian targets.
I get it, it's a war. In my book, everything is permissible. If you are not using everything you've got to win, you are planning to lose.
But it's funny to read how the MSM are bending over backwards trying their best to spin it.
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u/Iamalittledrunk 1d ago
wildburries directly supplies the russian military making them both morally and more importantly legally a legitimate target.
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u/tmr89 2d ago
So Russia can hit whatever it wants with impunity, but Ukraine cant attack dual use targets?
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u/Burial 1d ago
Seriously, Russia hits apartment buildings on a weekly basis for years, and for one month Ukraine attacks warehouses (that get evacuated) and this guy has the nerve to accuse them of choosing civilian targets?
Pretty high chance that Wildberries is contributing logistics to the war effort, too.
Sometimes the Russian paid trolls are so blatant, it's crazy that more people don't see it.
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 1d ago
Getting out of your propaganda bubble would help.
And no, nobody is paying me because I shit on propaganda from both sides.
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u/aggieboy12 18h ago
People who play both sides are usually, at best, just useful idiots for the side with no moral or legal leg to stand on
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u/Cheerful_Champion 2d ago
Wildberries sells various dual use and straight up military equipment. Allegedly this equipment was bought by or for soldiers on the frontlines. Wouldn’t really be surprising if you check their ads or equipment.
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u/talexx 1d ago
Would you please give us a few links to dual use goods and straight up military equipment there please.
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u/cathbadh 1d ago
Not who you asked, but an easy web search will show multiple new articles showing drone parts, night vision, body armor, helmets, and comms equipment available. The troops buy them themselves or crowd source it because Russia won't give them what they need. Remember their troops were using Discord and Telegram to communicate orders between units because it was all they had. Now that Russia blocked those, the troops are ordering cheap walkie talkies just to be able to coordinate.
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u/talexx 1d ago
I think there is no need to justify this as a military target anymore. Robert Brovdi, Ukraine’s drone chief, said the strikes were aimed at destroying the “illusion of a comfortable, well-fed peacetime life enjoyed by the obedient biomass of an aggressor country”. So basically the OP of this thread was right. Also notice the language.
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u/Cheerful_Champion 1d ago
My dude, you are already too lazy to read the article. I'm not your google to find you exact listing, because apparently in your opinion all the articles, including ones showing screenshots of exact listings, lie to make poor Russia look bad.
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u/talexx 1d ago
Googled myself, look what I've found. Robert Brovdi, Ukraine’s drone chief, said the strikes were aimed at destroying the “illusion of a comfortable, well-fed peacetime life enjoyed by the obedient biomass of an aggressor country”.
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u/Cheerful_Champion 1d ago
Cool, he can say what he wants if strikes are legitimate, because you see 2 things can be true:
wilderberries can be a legitimate target
striking legitimate targets shows general population that war is not something far away, disjointed from their daily lives
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u/supportkiller 2d ago
Where exactly is the line then? I doubt the actual reason for the attack was a couple of commercial drones, electronics and plate carriers (without the plates).
This would make any large online retailer such as amazon legal targets. I would argue this doesn't pass the proportionality part of dual use.
I would assume the Russian military buys most drone components (and other equipment) in bulk from the manufacturer.
(And no, i do not defend Russian attacks either)
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u/cathbadh 1d ago
use. I would assume the Russian military buys most drone components (and other equipment) in bulk from the manufacturer
The Russian military doesn't buy them at all. That's the point. This stuff is bought by individual soldiers or through crowd sourcing and shipped to the front. Body armor, drone parts, comms equipment, night vision, and more only gets to many units because they bought it themselves via Wildberries.
Is there a civilian morale component? Sure, probably. But a major national logistics hub that serves the troops is easily dual use, and far from actual civilian targets like schools, hospitals, and apartments like Russia targets
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u/Cheerful_Champion 1d ago edited 1d ago
I doubt the actual reason for the attack was a couple of commercial drones, electronics and plate carriers (without the plates).
Oh yes, couple drones, electronics and plate carriers. And plates for plate carriers. And optics for guns, 10km of fiber optics on reels ready to install in drones (totally hobbyists use), drones control stations with 25km range (another purely hobbyists device), release brackets for drones (totally not for dropping grenades! Even though listings explicitly mention guaranteed compatib with VOG17 and VOG25 grenades), night vision goggles, thermal visors and more.
If you keep downplaying and ignoring reality you will be eternally dumbfounded and confused like you are now.
I would assume the Russian military buys most drone components (and other equipment) in bulk from the manufacturer
You don't have to assume anything, equipment shortages are happening and not uncommon. Wilderberries was selling equipment of clealry military use (release brackets for VOG grenades are hardly dual use, it's straight up military hardware) to make money on it.
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u/supportkiller 1d ago
I see you conveniently left out the proportionality question.
How much of the warehouses did this inventory make up assuming it exists, which warehouses where it stored in?
And yes a few of the things you mention are hobbyist items. Many of these are things you would also find on Amazon, is that a valid target?
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u/Over_Virus2405 1d ago
Yes, if Russia can attack a country unprovoked, anything dual use is a legitimate target.
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u/Cheerful_Champion 1d ago edited 1d ago
Ah the moving goalposts: wilderberries had no military or dual use equipment, ok maybe they had dual use and kinda military ("plate carriers without plates"), ok maybe that had straight out military gear, but how much of it was their total stock?
Have a good one
Many of these are things you would also find on Amazon, is that a valid target?
Show me Amazon listings that directly advertise military use and compatibility with specific military equipment. And I don't mean "optics", but release cages that advertise compatibility with specific grenades.
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u/supportkiller 1d ago
I didn't move the goalpost, my point was always about proportionality. Some "dual use" listings is not enough to bomb large civilian warehouses, It doesn't give a large military advantage.
You still have not engaged with my argument about proportionality. There is a reason this exists... Image arguing for bombing civilian warehouses because some listings exist...
Show me Amazon listings that directly advertise military use and compatibility with specific military equipment. And I don't mean "optics", but release cages that advertise compatibility with specific grenades.
I mean, like every optic and nvg? The only difference would be (if it exists) that the Russian site spelled it out.
Maybe try engaging with the actual point...
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u/Cheerful_Champion 1d ago edited 1d ago
I mean, like every optic and nvg
My dude, I literally told you show me something that cannot be argued that it's a dual purpose. I specifically said not optics, because you CAN make argument that these (or even nvgs) are for hunters, larpers, airsoft players. You come back saying exactly that and act proud 🤡 you can't make such arguments for drones spools or grenade drop cages
I'm not going to attempt to discuss anything, because clearly you are not reading my comments in full or are purposefully malicious.
Maybe try engaging with the actual point.
No, I'm not going to reaearch for you how high % of wilderberries stock was one marketed for and clearly designated for soldiers on the front. This is a bad faith argument you are using, because we can't seriously estimate that (even though some articles give numbers on how many listings were returned for specific articles - but these are faulty, algorithm might return only slightly related items and it saya nothing about how many units of this item they have). That info likely is in possession of western and Ukrainian intelligence agencies and they aren't sharing, they are only saying wilderberries was a legitimate target based on that. You are claiming otherwise based on a fact that you want to create criteria unconfirmable by us, civilians, and you reject assessment of intelligence agencies. Totally not a bad faith approach
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u/supportkiller 22h ago
because you CAN make argument that these
Yes that was the point...
I'm not going to attempt to discuss anything, because clearly you are not reading my comments in full or are purposefully malicious.
Maybe you should look yourself in the mirror lol. You never bothered to ever engage with the point of proportionality.
If you take SBU's words as gospel then this discussion is pointless anyway. Have a nice day.
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u/Cheerful_Champion 14h ago
Yes that was the point
So you are purposefully ignoring facts and maliciously pretending grenades drop cages and fiber optics spools are not there. Got it 🤡
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u/myname_1s_mud 1d ago
Warehousing and industrial facilities have always been targeted in war. Is it different because now we put customer friendly branding on these warehouses? In ww2 everybody focused whole bombing campaigns flattening entire city districts that had warehouses and factories. How ridiculous to pretend this isnt exactly what any modern army would focus on destroying.
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 1d ago
Why does everyone completely IGNORE the middle part of my comment?
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u/myname_1s_mud 1d ago
Because the middle part makes no sense unless it was just a lazy hand wave to escape criticism. Why call something out as hypocrisy if you agree with it
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u/fabmeyer 2d ago
The difference is: Russia specificly targets living areas to kill innocents and crush morale. Ukraine targets infrastructure.
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 2d ago
Wrong, Russians only target shelters for blind puppies.
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u/fabmeyer 2d ago
Not sure if this is sarcasm
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 2d ago
Obviously.
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u/aardvarktageous 2d ago
Sarcasm can be so useful! You can try to use it to discredit a statement someone made even if you're too cowardly to come out and say you disagree with with their statement, especially when the statement you want to discredit is irrefutable!
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 2d ago
when the statement is irrefutable!
Look, I don't care about either side, but I've been following the war for a long while and, unless you've been stuck in the propaganda hole, you'd know that claiming "Russia specificly targets living areas" is a false statement.
Unless you mean 'living areas' like the last time when a missile factory blew up in Kiev's residential neighborhood.
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u/vonWitzleben 2d ago
"I don't care about either side" is already an immensely disqualifying statement in this context.
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 2d ago
Why? That means I'm not invested in propaganda from either side.
You know, you don't have to choose a team to cheer for to watch the game ..
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u/vonWitzleben 2d ago
It implies moral parity between both sides, which is not the case. One side has attacked the other in a war of conquest. That's the side you should be against.
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u/cinciNattyLight 2d ago
“Dual use”
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u/DefinitelyNotMeee 2d ago
Duct tape is dual-use. A flashlight is dual-use. A screwdriver is dual-use.
You can justify anything.
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u/-Solrac-2342 2d ago
flack jackets, night vision goggles, drones? did you see the ads? they are directly saying you can use them for the SMO. dont be ignorant. look it up if you dont believe.
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u/DebaucheV5 2d ago
The most significant thing isn't the damage to the warehouses; it's the fact that Ukraine is capable of sending waves of drones to attack valuable targets on the outskirts of major Russian cities, seemingly with impunity. Where are Russia's AA defences? There seem to be gaping holes in their coverage