The chief executive of the largest e-commerce company in Russia has stated that the firm has suffered significant financial losses due to drone attacks from Ukraine and is seeking compensation from the government led by Vladimir Putin.
Recent airstrikes by Ukraine on the expansive warehouses of Wildberries, often referred to as Russia’s version of Amazon, have resulted in dramatic scenes of towering smoke columns emanating from fires engulfing the facilities.
Within a short span, Ukraine has targeted more than a dozen storage sites of the retailer as part of their aerial offensive to disrupt Russia‘s military operations, impacting the economy and exposing the repercussions of the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine to the public.
Tatiana Kim, the founder and CEO of Wildberries, released a video statement asserting that the company bears no legal responsibility for the losses incurred, citing the attacks by Ukraine as constituting force majeure events.
Echoing the official stance of the Kremlin, Kim labeled the assaults on Wildberries as “terrorist acts” that have resulted in financial losses amounting to billions of dollars.
Kim advised affected sellers to await support from the Russian government in the form of a comprehensive aid package to mitigate their losses.
The initial strikes by Ukrainian drones targeted Wildberries facilities in Elektrostal, near Moscow, and the Tambov region on July 18. Subsequent attacks extended to various locations in western and southern Russia, including Crimea, resulting in casualties and injuries.
Although not directly naming Wildberries, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated that the targeted facilities were involved in supplying equipment and components to the Russian military.
In response, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov refuted the claims on July 21, accusing Ukraine of attacking civilian targets, while highlighting Russia’s own targeting of Ukrainian logistics and retail sites.
A search on the Wildberries website reveals a range of products with potential dual use for civilian and military purposes, such as protective gear, communication devices, and electronics, some labeled as suitable for “special military operations,” the term used by the Kremlin for the conflict in Ukraine.
Kim stressed that similar items were available from other online retailers, emphasizing the lack of rationale behind the attacks, which she believes were intended to instigate fear and disarray among Russian citizens.
To date, Wildberries has been the target of 16 separate attacks, including recent strikes in regions like Krasnodar, Stavropol, St. Petersburg
