Russia imports gas as Ukrainian strikes result in shortages

+ World Russia imports gas as Ukrainian strikes result in shortages August 21, 20264:45 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition By Charles Maynes Russia imports gas as Ukrainian strikes result in shortages Listen &middot; 2:31 2:31 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5939990/nx-s1-9895586" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript Russia has begun importing fuel as Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries and depots cause shortages. Sponsor Message Transcript LEILA FADEL, HOST: Russia, one of the world's top producers of oil, is suffering from rolling gas shortages. It's a consequence of months of Ukrainian attacks against the country's energy and logistics sectors, part of a wider effort to undermine the Kremlin's ability to fund its war. NPR's Charles Maynes reports from Moscow.

+ CHARLES MAYNES, BYLINE: Even in a petrol state like Russia, gas is just one of those things. People notice when the price goes up, when it goes down and certainly when there's no gas at all. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) YULIA BKHOVETS: (Speaking Russian). MAYNES: "I've been waiting since 2 a.m.," says Yulia Bkhovets (ph) in a video she posted to social media outside a gas station in the southern Russian city of Sochi. (SOUNDBITE OF VEHICLES PASSING) MAYNES: This has been a summer of discontent for Russian drivers, with many facing long lines at the pump due to sustained Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil refineries, storage hubs, pipelines and ports. By independent estimates, a third of Russian oil production is now offline due to Ukrainian strikes. Russian energy minister Alexander Novak insists things aren't that bad. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) ALEXANDER NOVAK: (Speaking Russian). MAYNES: "There are problems with logistics, and we're working with each region separately to address them," he told Russian state media this week. Among government solutions, access to lower grade fuel rushed repairs to bring damaged oil facilities back online, and imported gas from countries like India, Kazakhstan and Belarus, moves Novak says will alleviate shortages. Russian president Vladimir Putin shares his confidence. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN: (Speaking Russian). MAYNES: This week, Putin acknowledged the harm from Ukrainian drone attacks but maintained there would not be - in fact, could not be - any critical consequences to the Russian economy or the war effort. Still, timing is everything in politics. The fuel problems have peaked ahead of parliamentary elections in which critics of the war and its impact on daily life have already been stripped from the ballot, and neither the Kremlin nor the Russian military seem to have an answer on how to prevent future Ukrainian attacks, leaving Russians to pray for the best. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED CHOIR: (Singing in non-English language). MAYNES: The Russian Orthodox Church, the influential backer of the war, has used the pulpit to weigh in on the issue and counsel patients. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) ALEXANDER BUTRIN: (Speaking Russian). MAYNES: This week saw archpriest Alexander Butrin warn Russians it was un-Christian to let anger over gas shortages spill over into anti-government protests. His underlying message, this is no time to rock the boat, particularly when that boat is running on empty. Charles Maynes, NPR News, Moscow. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{310:function(e,n,o){o.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([o.e(1),o.e(2),o.e(3),o.e(4),o.e(80)]).then((e=>{o(15),o(769),o(155),o(176),o(93),o(447),o(254),o(128),o(130),o(754),o(175),o(755),o(255),o(78),o(773)}).bind(null,o)).catch(o.oe)},782:function(e,n,o){e.exports=o(310)}},[[782,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();