Russian volunteer organizations have begun canceling and postponing trips carrying humanitarian aid to the combat zone because of fuel shortages, according to Verstka.
As the report says, the Russian Defense Ministry is not fully covering the needs of troops at the front. Because of that, volunteers have to deliver not only drones and thermal imagers, but also everyday essentials, ranging from thermal underwear to body bags.
In some areas, volunteers say, gasoline is impossible to find, so part of the cargo has to be sent with passing vehicles. This has made delivery logistics significantly more difficult.
The Krasnodar-based charity Dobrotvortsy, for example, reported a lack of gasoline on highways in the “special military operation” zone, including in the annexed part of the Zaporizhzhia region. Another group, Po Zovu Nashikh Serdets, delayed its next trip. Its head, Tatyana Timokhina, said a gas station refused to fill their canisters.
“I explained why we were filling the canister, and she simply turned off the pump. She does not care. We are filling up for the SMO, and they are probably all against the SMO here,” Timokhina said.
Other volunteer groups cited by the outlet say the number of trips has dropped almost to zero. The remaining drivers are facing a heavier burden, as they now have to pick up cargo from several organizations at once.
The Komi-based organization Nadezhny Tyl said the gasoline situation in the war zone has “heated up to the limit” and that trips now require fuel to be secured in canisters in advance. The volunteers opened a separate fundraiser for that purpose.
Reuters had earlier reported that after Ukrainian drone attacks on oil refineries, gasoline production in Russia was covering only 65% of seasonal demand.