During Operation Barrel, the Freedom of Russia underground destroyed more than 10,000 tonnes of crude oil and inflicted over USD 10 million in damage on Russia.

The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence reported this.

As available storage capacity shrank, the Russians began looking for other ways to store and move crude oil. One such solution was dispersed transportation of oil by rail, in tank wagons travelling across Russian territory.

This logistics method became a new target for the resistance movement.

The operation was preceded by lengthy preparation and extensive work by the underground: penetrating the relevant enemy structures, obtaining classified information, analysing it and identifying the weak points of Russian logistics.

The next stage was preparing direct action against the designated targets — entering a site under heightened security and blowing up dozens of tank wagons.

Carrying out an operation of this kind required coordinated work by a considerable number of participants, specialist knowledge and practical experience. As a result, the underground completed the tasks it had set itself and inflicted appreciable losses on the enemy.

The results of Operation Barrel:

  • more than 10,000 tonnes of crude oil destroyed — oil that was to be used to sustain Russia’s war economy;
  • material damage of more than USD 10 million;
  • disruption to elements of the rail logistics used to move strategic resources and military cargo.

All those who took part in the operation are safe.

Barrel demonstrated that even on its own territory, the aggressor state cannot guarantee the security of its logistics routes.

As ArmyInform reported earlier, after the full-scale invasion in 2022 the aggressor state changed the official overseeing the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine and the structure used to administer them.