Ukraine struck two more Wildberries warehouses in Russia's Krasnodar and Stavropol regions on Wednesday, extending a campaign that redefines what constitutes a legitimate military target in modern war. Zelenskyy described the facilities as logistics hubs supplying the Russian military with drone components and other equipment. Wildberries co-founder Tatyana Kim confirmed hits in Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk. Krasnodar's regional governor reported a young woman killed and three others hospitalized. The Wildberries strikes mark a deliberate escalation in Ukraine's deep-strike doctrine. Rather than hitting purely military targets, Kyiv is now systematically attacking the dual-use commercial infrastructure that underpins Russia's war machine. The Russian e-commerce lobby group Aurek has already asked the government to delay tax payments for six months for businesses sustaining losses — an acknowledgment that these strikes are imposing real economic friction. Russia, for its part, continues to target Ukraine's own logistics hubs, energy systems, and power grid, including a Wednesday attack on an energy facility in Chernihiv that left more than 100,000 consumers without power. The strikes coincide with a significant command change. Mykhailo Drapatyi, Ukraine's new top military commander, announced he has been tasked with intensifying counteroffensive actions and launching new operations inside Russia. His appointment commands near-universal domestic support — Drapatyi famously charged an armoured vehicle through a pro-Russian blockade in Mariupol in 2014. His mandate is explicit: "continue and intensify offensive operations in all domains, plan new operations behind enemy lines, develop our military and its technologies." But the military confidence sits alongside political turbulence. Zelenskyy faces sustained pressure to reinstate former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov, whose removal cascaded into the sacking of Oleksandr Syrskyi as top general and Drapatyi's appointment. Protesters are organizing a Friday demonstration outside Zelenskyy's presidential office, and the political crisis is rolling into its second week. On the diplomatic front, Zelenskyy spoke by phone with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner — Trump interlocutors who have repeatedly visited Russia but not Ukraine. Zelenskyy called it "a good, important conversation on how to reinvigorate diplomacy and bring peace closer," while separately meeting US NATO ambassador Matthew Whitaker in Kyiv to discuss production licences for Patriot air defence systems. "I am, frankly, asking for faster action and greater support," Zelenskyy said. The EU is pressing forward on its own pressure track. European forces boarded the MV South Star oil tanker suspected of sailing under a false flag as part of Russia's shadow fleet carrying sanctioned oil. Brussels is pushing past Greek objections to agree a new sanctions round, while maintaining a temporary $44 price cap on Russian oil — a cap Brussels wants extended for months to prevent Russia from profiting off Middle East war-driven price spikes. Greece is holding out to protect one of its firms transporting LNG from Russia's Arctic Yamal facility. Russia's defence ministry claimed strikes on Odesa and Chornomorsk, targeting port infrastructure and vessels it said supported Ukraine's military, plus warehouses allegedly storing drones. Reuters noted it could not independently verify the Russian statement. The war continues to be fought simultaneously across logistics networks, energy grids, shipping lanes, and diplomatic back-channels — with each side attempting to dismantle the other's capacity to sustain operations.
