Putin Says Ukrainian Drone Strikes Aim to Split Russian Society

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Ukraine's escalating drone strikes on Russian territory are aimed at "sowing confusion" and undermining the country's economy. In recent months, Ukraine has struck deeper into Russia, regularly hitting oil refineries and export hubs.

"Their goal is to create a split in Russian society, sow confusion and inflict economic damage," Putin told Russian soldiers during a Kremlin meeting. "But they will not succeed," he added. The remarks came hours after Kyiv announced it had hit a major oil refinery over 1,000 kilometers (about 620 miles) from the front line.

Putin acknowledged that Ukrainian strikes had caused "economic damage" but claimed that "everything was quickly restored." It has been difficult to assess the full extent of damage to Russia's energy infrastructure. Ukraine has called the strikes fair retaliation for Russia's daily drone and missile barrages on Ukrainian towns and cities.

Putin said Moscow needs to improve its air defenses, marking the second such call this month. The Russian leader compared the West to 19th-century French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and 20th-century Nazi Germany leader Adolf Hitler—both of whom attempted to seize Russian territory. He also praised Russian assault groups for "coming in, taking control and securing territory for Russia."

Putin claimed that the Russian armed forces have more than 700,000 personnel involved in the war in Ukraine. He recently rejected the possibility of face-to-face talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to end the more than four-year conflict.