Russia, Ukraine trade strikes on energy, e-commerce
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- Russia struck Dnipropetrovsk at least 50 times with drones, artillery and aerial bombs on Friday, killing two and wounding six across five districts, while a Molniya drone killed a 77-year-old woman in Kherson and cluster munitions killed two in Kharkiv, according to local governors.
- Ukraine hit a Wildberries logistics facility in Yekaterinburg roughly 2,000 km from the frontline, causing large fires that were contained after the building was evacuated, according to the company.
- Ukraine has struck at least 20 Wildberries sites since mid-July, killing at least 13 people, with Kyiv claiming the company supports Moscow's war effort—a charge Moscow and Wildberries deny.
- Ukraine's 40-day strike campaign has hit 14 Russian refineries, several oil depots and loading terminals, 14 aircraft and four airfields, as it seeks to curtail Russia's energy infrastructure.
- Russia attacked seven oil and gas production facilities in eastern Ukraine overnight into Friday, with Naftogaz acting CEO Sergiy Fedorenko saying Russia is "systematically attacking" to inflict maximum damage ahead of winter.
- Zelenskyy arrived in Serbia on Friday for his first official visit, planning to discuss expanding economic ties and EU relations—a meeting expected to anger Russia, Serbia's long-time ally and gas supplier.
- Russian forces hit two more cargo vessels in the Black Sea and fuel storage facilities at the port of Pivdennyi, according to Russia's Defence Ministry.
Why it matters: Both sides are deliberately targeting each other's commercial and energy infrastructure rather than purely military assets, opening a phase of economic warfare aimed at degrading war-making capacity and civilian resilience before winter. Ukraine's ability to hit a Wildberries warehouse 2,000 km behind the front line demonstrates a new reach into Russia's domestic economy, while Russia's systematic strikes on Ukrainian oil and gas facilities are explicitly designed to cripple heating and fuel supplies ahead of cold weather.
