Putin says Ukrainian strikes on infrastructure causing “problems” for Russia
Kiev — Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged Sunday that the Ukrainian attacks were causing “problems” for the country. Russia.
“As for attacks on critical infrastructure in general and energy infrastructure in particular, of course these attacks on our infrastructure facilities create problems, that is very clear,” Putin said in an interview with Russian journalist Pavel Zarubin. “We are currently observing a certain shortage, but it is not critical.”
Ukraine has recently intensified its attacks against Russia, targeting its energy and logistics infrastructure. last week this started One of the heaviest drone attacks on Russia since the beginning of the war targets 12 regions in the neighboring country, as well as the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia has occupied since 2014.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhailo Fedorov said he aims to isolate Crimea from the rest of Russia and turn it into “an island”. On Friday, Russian authorities in Crimea declared a state of emergency after halting all fuel sales to civilians in response to Ukrainian attacks earlier in the week.
Amid attacks from Ukraine, Putin said addressing fuel shortages in Russia and bolstering the country’s air defenses against Ukrainian attacks are top priorities.
Analysts say Ukraine’s efforts to eliminate Russian air defenses increased the impact of the attack. Previously CBS News reported He said Moscow was experiencing a shortage of S-300 missile interceptors, a surface-to-air missile system that has traditionally been a key component of Russia’s air defenses against cruise and ballistic missiles.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense announced that Russia has destroyed 1,454 air defense systems since its invasion in 2022. This includes seven systems destroyed from Friday to Monday. data Provided by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and analyzed by CBS News.
“The first task is to quickly and significantly increase the production of the most needed air defense systems,” Putin said in an interview on Sunday.
Fuel and air defense shortages come as Russian citizens’ desire to end the war grows. In a nationwide Russian public opinion poll released Monday by the Russian Institute for Conflict Research and Analysis, a Ukrainian think tank, 81% of Russians said they support ending the war tomorrow; This is the highest figure since the war began in 2022. 1,600 participants participated in the survey by phone.
But Russia’s leader showed little sign of softening. Putin said in the interview that he rejected Ukraine’s proposal for a mutual ceasefire on long-range attacks.
“It is clear why this offer was made, because our counterattacks deep into Ukrainian territory are much stronger, have greater impact and, frankly, more destructive,” Putin said. he said. “The Ukrainian Armed Forces apparently believe that this could be their salvation, given the catastrophic personnel shortage. But saving the Kiev regime is not part of our plans.”
