Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the "40-day operation" that began at the end of June ended successfully.
On the 9th (local time), the Kyiv Independent said Zelenskyy recently appeared on Ukraine's united news program and estimated that the losses to Russia's logistics network from the operation reached $12.2 billion (about 17 trillion won).
Zelenskyy said he was fully satisfied with the results of the operation and noted that Ukraine is assessing the scale of damage Russia suffered from attacks on its logistics network. He added that, in response to Russia's attacks on Ukraine's logistics network, Ukraine carried out a separate logistics operation, and claimed Russia is facing massive losses and serious problems.
Ukraine's Security Service also issued a statement on the 4th, saying it "aimed to simultaneously weaken key elements of Russia's military apparatus." Ukraine says the logistics warehouses of Wildberries, Russia's largest online retailer, were used for military purposes.
Starting on the 18th of last month, Ukraine attacked at least 20 Wildberries logistics warehouses across Russia, including Kotovsk, St. Petersburg, and Perm. As a result, warehouse operating rates fell by about 10%, and tens of thousands of small and midsize businesses selling goods and services on the platform reportedly suffered significant damage. Wildberries has about 81 million monthly users.
Some also say the operation is intended to influence Russia's general election scheduled for next month. A Ukrainian official familiar with the plan told the Kyiv Independent that "one of the goals of the 40-day operation is to make Russians feel the direct impact of the war ahead of the September general election."
Russia's general election will be held from the 18th to the 20th of next month. In this election, residents of Donbas (Donetsk and Luhansk) and Novorossiya (the Black Sea littoral area) in Ukraine—regions Russia occupied and incorporated as its own territory—will participate for the first time.
Since launching the 40-day operation in June, Ukraine has expanded attacks targeting Black Sea tankers transporting supplies to Crimea and Russian rear-area energy facilities. In particular, distribution networks, including Wildberries logistics warehouses, have emerged as new targets.
As clashes between Russia and Ukraine have intensified again recently, civilian casualties are mounting. According to Russian authorities, the western border city of Belgorod came under Ukrainian attack overnight, killing three civilians. In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city bordering Belgorod, Russian drone strikes damaged apartment buildings and other structures, killing two civilians.
In the Black Sea coastal region of Odesa, port facilities were damaged in attacks and eight residents were injured. In the Sumy region, two oil-related facilities were attacked.