The russian dictator vladimir putin suggested that residents of the aggressor country, the russian federation, should get used to fuel supply disruptions caused by Ukraine’s strikes on oil refining facilities.

Putin made these remarks at a session of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok; his comments were reported by the propaganda website BFM.

According to the dictator, the shortage of gasoline and other types of fuel arose due to a miscalculation by the russian leadership.

“Why did we find ourselves in this situation? Because we assumed that purely civilian facilities could not be targets of any attacks, even in the context of an armed conflict. In this regard, we were mistaken. The enemy, unfortunately, thinks otherwise,” putin said.

The dictator added that companies have “stepped up” and allegedly begun investing in the protection of oil refineries. He claims this is already yielding results.

The moderator asked putin whether this meant that russians should get used to fuel shortages.

“We need to be prepared for anything,” putin replied.

It should be noted that the dictator’s remarks about “purely civilian facilities” in the context of attacks on oil refineries contradict the actions of the russian federation itself. As early as the first months after the start of the full-scale invasion, the russian army attacked the few remaining Ukrainian oil refineries, forcing them to cease operations.

The Kremenchuk Oil Refinery in the Poltava Region ceased operations in April 2022 (in the following years, the occupiers continued to strike the facility’s infrastructure). A similar fate befell the Odesa Oil Refinery, which had already been operating below full capacity even before February 24, 2022.

The Lysychansk Oil Refinery in the currently occupied part of the Luhansk Region was completely destroyed by the summer of 2022.

The Shebelynka Gas Processing Plant (GPP) in the Kharkiv Region, which produced Euro-5 gasoline, came under attack by the russian Armed Forces in March 2022. Operations at the plant were halted due to the risk of damage.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier, a decree came into effect in russia on September 1 allowing gas stations to sell fuel that meets lower environmental standards, such as Euro-2, Euro-3, and Euro-4. Their production and use were permitted amid a fuel shortage in the domestic market.

As a reminder, in late July, the Financial Times reported, citing analysts at S&P Global Energy, that Ukrainian strikes had knocked out more than 30% of refining capacity.

This information was later confirmed by Aleksandr Shokhin, president of the russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP). According to him, Ukraine’s attacks resulted in the loss of 25–30% of capacity.

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