Ukraine targets retail giant Wildberries as economy stalls

Ukrainian drone strikes forced the evacuation of a Wildberries warehouse in the central Russian city of Ryazan on Wednesday. The attack on Russia’s Amazon-style e-commerce giant signals a deliberate shift in Kyiv’s military strategy away from energy infrastructure and towards major consumer logistics hubs.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the targeted warehouses were supplying Russian forces with drone components and navigation equipment. Wildberries, founded in 2004 and employing roughly 48,000 people, is a cornerstone of Russian domestic commerce. The Russian government may now need to prop up the retailer, with state-controlled bank VTB expected to lead the intervention.

The strikes land as Russia's broader wartime economy shows clear signs of distress. "The Russian economy has stalled," said Elina Ribakova, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. "It will have growth of zero percent this year — at best, we have seen contraction of the economy in the first quarter and industrial output contraction as well."

Ribakova noted that falling industrial output indicates a meaningful deceleration in Russia's defense sector, exposing a critical vulnerability. "So, Russia is vulnerable," she added. This domestic pressure coincides with a renewed push in the U.S. Congress for sweeping sanctions, with legislation championed by the late Senator Lindsey Graham passing its first Senate hurdle.

Zelenskyy discussed the shifting dynamics with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Tuesday. Their talks covered licenses for Patriot interceptor production and efforts to revive diplomatic negotiations. However, elevated global oil prices continue to provide Moscow with crucial revenue, a dynamic boosted by Iranian threats to close the Strait of Hormuz.

Analysts note the drone strikes compound existing structural damage to Russian commerce. "Western sanctions fractured supply chains. Tax increases squeezed margins. Internet blackouts disrupted operations. And recent fuel shortages drove up costs while adding to inflationary pressures," said Natalya Kovaleva, a researcher at Chatham House. She added that while Russian businesses have absorbed previous shocks, striking a massive retailer like Wildberries represents a significant new escalation.

Kyiv's hope is that disrupting civilian businesses will turn ordinary Russians against the war and force Putin to negotiate. Yet the strategy carries deep uncertainty. "Even as it becomes even harder to do business in Russia, the country's elites appear more dependent on – and wary of – the Kremlin [than] ever before," Kovaleva said.