Russian residents in border regions are increasingly apathetic towards the war and assume that Russia will not agree to an end to the war in the near future. The Russian opposition publication Insider reported on August 25 that Russian civilians living in border areas are increasingly less likely to donate funds and volunteer for the war effort.
This was noted by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
Insider interviewed residents of Bryansk, Kursk, and Belgorod regions who said they did not believe Russia would accept a ceasefire in the near future and expected the war to continue.
Interviewees said that civilians near the border initially engaged and donated funds to the war effort, but no longer have the motivation to help the army.
One interviewee from Belgorod region claimed that residents of border areas increasingly perceive Russian soldiers as a threat due to the high risk of Ukrainian drone strikes against Russian soldiers and cases in which Russian forces have damaged civilian infrastructure and looted from local residents. residents.
An interviewee from Kursk Oblast said that people are tired of the war, want to return to normal life, and do not want to raise funds for the war effort because the war has no clear end.
An interviewee from Bryansk Oblast said that Moscow's military goals are constantly changing, suggesting that Putin's attempts to appeal to the American public with statements of his willingness to negotiate are at odds with the position he takes with the Russian public that Russia remains committed to achieving its military goals.
Putin's attempts to appeal to both information spaces may confuse Russian audiences. Russian state and independent polls from early 2025 show that most Russians support the continuation of the war in Ukraine, suggesting that the population in areas bordering Ukraine, which feels the war most strongly, supports the military action to a lesser extent than the population in areas further from the fighting.
Recent Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries have contributed to gasoline shortages across Russia, which is likely to lead to higher inflation and further macroeconomic instability in the country.
Reuters reported on August 25 that recent Ukrainian strikes on 10 refineries in Russia have disrupted at least 17% of Russia's refining capacity, or approximately 1.1 million barrels per day, and have led to shortages of A-95 (premium) gasoline in some areas of occupied Ukraine, southern Russia and the Far East of Russia.
Reuters reported on August 26 that Russia has increased its crude oil export plan by 200,000 barrels per day in August as Ukrainian drone strikes disrupted refineries and left crude available for Russia to export.
This revision to crude oil export plans could boost Russia's oil revenues in the short term, but is likely to have an adverse impact on the domestic economy. On August 25, the Wall Street Journal reported that several regions in Russia and occupied Crimea had imposed restrictions on gas stations as a result of damage caused by Ukrainian drones to Russian oil refineries.
The mayor of the Kuril Islands, Konstantin Istomin, also reported on August 25 that Russian authorities had stopped the sale of A-92 gasoline to Russian citizens in the Kuril Islands, Sakhalin Oblast.
Russia had been struggling to meet domestic gasoline demand even before the recent Ukrainian strikes and had imposed periodic bans on gasoline exports since 2022, with the most recent ban in late July and August.
The recent Ukrainian strikes have exacerbated gasoline shortages and caused gasoline prices to spike across Russia and occupied Ukraine, likely to increase costs for consumers and increase costs for businesses across all industries.