Fuel crisis in Putin’s Russia
No gasoline: Russian soldiers are probably stuck in Crimea
Updated July 13, 2026 – 6:50 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
In Crimea, which is occupied by Russia, vehicles are said to be stranded because there is a lack of gasoline. According to Ukraine, it remains partly unprotected in the area.
According to Ukrainian information, fuel shortages are limiting the mobility of Russian mobile anti-aircraft units on the of Russia annexed Crimean peninsula and in occupied parts of the Ukrainian Kherson region. The information comes from the Ukrainian partisan group ATESH and cannot be independently verified.
ATESH said informants within Russian military units reported strict rationing of fuel for mobile fire groups and anti-aircraft units used to defend against Ukrainian drones. Those affected include the 1096th anti-aircraft missile brigade of the 22nd Army Corps in Crimea, mobile units near Chongar and anti-aircraft and drone units of the 49th Russian Army in the occupied part of the Kherson region.
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According to the partisan group, fuel will only be spent for immediate combat operations. Otherwise vehicles would have to stop. An informant cited by ATESH reported that crews had to abandon their vehicles if they ran out of fuel en route. The vehicles were then left partly unprotected in the area and could therefore be discovered by Ukrainian drones.
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Russia disguises military convoys as water transport
According to ATESH, there have already been several such cases on the route between Henichesk and Skadovsk in the hinterland of the occupied Kherson region. The Russian military has not yet commented on the allegations.
Independently of this, the Reuters news agency reported, citing Ukrainian military representatives, that Russia is now increasingly disguising fuel shipments as civilian water or milk tankers. This is intended to prevent the transport of Ukrainian drones from being recognized as military supplies. There is also no independent confirmation of this information.
The alleged fuel shortage comes during a period of increased Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy and logistics infrastructure. According to Ukrainian information, these attacks target, among other things, refineries, fuel depots and supply routes.
