The Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) of Ukraine has received internal Russian documents indicating serious economic losses in the Russian Federation due to the war and sanctions. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky announced this on Telegram on May 18.
According to Zelensky, one of the key indicators of problems in the Russian economy was the reduction in the number of operating oil wells.
“Only one Russian oil company – and not the largest one – has already been forced to close about 400 wells. Considering the specifics of Russian oil production, these are significant losses, since restarting wells in Russia is much more difficult than in other oil-producing countries,” Zelensky said.
Intelligence also recorded a reduction in oil refining in Russia by at least 10% in just a few months of this year.
“We see that our Ukrainian long-range sanctions are really working, and we will increase this direction of our active actions,” the head of state emphasized.
He also drew attention to problems in the financial sector of the Russian Federation. According to the president, 11 Russian banks are preparing for complete liquidation due to critical problems, and another eight financial institutions have accumulated significant risks.
“The indicators of the federal budget deficit this year are also optimistic for us – almost $80 billion in the fifth month of the year, and this against the backdrop of the bankruptcy of a significant part of Russian regional budgets,” Zelensky emphasized.
The President also said that he had instructed the head of the SVR, Oleg Lugovsky, to disseminate some of the information received about Russia’s attempts to attract foreign companies to circumvent sanctions and support the Russian economy.
According to Zelensky, the Ukrainian side has recorded attempts to organize the export of grain from occupied Crimea, as well as other schemes for the economic exploitation of the peninsula with the participation of companies from the United States. In addition, according to intelligence data, Russia is trying to attract foreign investment and technology to its Arctic oil and gas projects.
