(SAMARA, RUSSIA) – Public anger against the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin is boiling over as Russians openly insult the Kremlin, tell the regime to “go to friends in North Korea and Afghanistan,” and declare widespread hatred for the ruling cabal, while Ukraine’s long-range strike campaign continues to dismantle the country’s economic infrastructure.
A Russian man in Samara delivered an extraordinary public rant that has spread across Russian social media, filmed while driving past a Wildberries logistics facility engulfed in raging fire. Addressing the Kremlin directly, he said: “For f‘s sake, we are absolutely sick of you terrorising Ukrainians and Russians. You have even ped off every stray dog by now.”
He continued: “Today long range sanctions from Madar landed here in Samara. Our warehouses are burning. Oil depots and other effing s. For f‘s sake, people are dying in Ukraine. People are dying in Russia. Our economy, for f***’s sake, is on bent gay knees like an effing girl from a brothel. Put an effing end to this.”
The man then told the Kremlin: “F*** off to your effing partners in Afghanistan or North Korea. Play up the ae with them. Tell each other about your traditional values and other effing s. We hate you. We have no respect for you. F** off out of here, you effing c***s.”
The rant, which would have resulted in immediate detention at Lubyanka just weeks ago, appears to have gone unpunished as the Kremlin approaches its tightly controlled September elections and cannot afford the optics of cracking down on visibly furious citizens.
Street interviews conducted across Russia reveal deep and vocalised contempt for the regime. Asked if he planned to vote in September elections, one man replied: “No, because we get ripped off at every turn. Just effing scammers sitting up there in the Kremlin.” A woman told interviewers: “I do not trust the government. Whoever wins, nothing will change.” Another man, asked if he would support the ruling United Russia party, walked away before turning back and saying simply: “I do not think I even need to comment.” A further woman, appearing visibly disgusted, stated: “They do not do much good for the people. Not a single example comes to mind.” One man summarised: “If you look at it in this context of all this geopolitical stuff, it is a total s***show everywhere, to be honest.”
The wave of public fury coincides with Ukraine’s relentless strike campaign, which overnight destroyed what appears to be the 13th Wildberries logistics hub targeted in recent weeks. The facility, located in the Krasni Bor Tosnensky district of Leningrad Oblast near St. Petersburg, was struck by multiple drones and is believed to represent a loss exceeding one billion dollars (£790 million, €920 million). Footage showed drones careening effortlessly into the facility with no visible outgoing air defence.
A new bingo board tracking the destruction of Wildberries facilities now shows 13 of 30 major logistics centres destroyed, with 17 remaining. The previous day, Ukraine struck a facility in the Vladimir region just south of Moscow, another total loss described as the third largest Wildberries location, with damages exceeding $175 million (£138 million, €160 million).
Ukraine also struck the Syzran oil refinery, located 900 kilometres from the Ukrainian border. The facility processes over 7 million tonnes of crude oil per year. Satellite imagery confirmed the main processing units were hit. Separately, new satellite data from the Russian opposition group Black Spark confirmed the Ryazan oil refinery, one of Russia’s largest, is now completely out of operation after both massive processing units were destroyed. Another major oil facility in Perm, nearly 1,800 kilometres from Ukraine, was also burning, though it remains unconfirmed whether Ukraine was responsible. Footage of these strikes was released by Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces.
Bloomberg data shows Russia’s refining output in July fell to its lowest level since 2002, dropping to 3.61 million barrels per day. Russian grain exports meanwhile plunged 37.6% year on year in July, though Kremlin propaganda outlets buried this figure by headlining only wheat data, which fell a smaller 17.7%. Barley exports were down over 80%. Russian funds are experiencing their largest outflow since records began in 1998, according to data from Invest Funds.
Panic is spreading among Russian military bloggers following confirmed sightings of Ukraine’s new Triada Robotics high speed drone. The system reportedly has a speed of 650 to 700 kilometres per hour, a range of 2,000 kilometres, and a payload of 100 to 200 kilogrammes. One Russian military blogger wrote: “The Ukrainian armed forces drone menagerie is evolving at a breakneck speed. Shooting down such a drone is practically impossible. A helicopter or light aircraft would be useless as interceptors.”
The same blogger confirmed that for the fourth consecutive month, Ukraine has been launching several times more drones at Russia than Russia has at Ukraine. Ukrainian drone launches increased from 4,000 in January to 12,000 in June and July, while Russian launches peaked at 8,000 in May and have since declined back to 4,500 in July, a near threefold gap.
Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov escalated rhetoric further on state television, suggesting Russia should supply Iran with Zircon missiles capable of sinking the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. “It would be very interesting to see how they perform against aircraft carriers,” he said, explicitly naming the US vessel operating near Iran.
The Russian dictator’s handlers continue to shield him from reality. During a staged propaganda visit to Krasnoyarsk, authorities were once again caught drastically lowering fuel prices at petrol stations along the route from the airport, then restoring them the following morning. Prices were lowered from 121 to 96 roubles for the visit, then returned to normal. The same deception was documented in Irkutsk the previous week, prompting widespread ridicule on Russian social media.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Denys Shmyhal warned that Russia now plans to destroy Ukrainian water and sewage systems ahead of winter. “Putin wants to finish off our energy system and derail our economy and weapons production,” Shmyhal said. “He also hopes in winter our society will break from exhaustion and pressure leadership to sign the surrender.”
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the development of Ukraine’s new anti-ballistic missile system, Freya, which will be produced in cooperation with 10 European countries and 12 defence companies. The coalition includes Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Zelenskyy stated Ukraine already possesses the interceptor missile and launcher technology and requires only radar systems and sensors from partners.
Zelenskyy also extended an offer to meet Putin and discuss freezing the war, proposing a ceasefire in the air, a halt to strikes on energy infrastructure, and a freeze of hostilities along the front line. The offer was widely interpreted as diplomatic positioning ahead of the Russian dictator’s fake elections, as accepting would signal weakness.
In Kherson, a Russian drone was filmed hunting a civilian selling groceries at a vegetable market. The footage, recorded on the morning of the report, showed a large drone with a massive payload chasing the man as he ran around a van. The civilian survived but was injured. Such scenes are described as constant in the region.
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