Moscow Unscathed: War Reaches Beyond the MKAD, and Authorities Advise Turning Off the Lights

Photo: Geert Vanden Wijngaert/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Four and a half years of war with Ukraine, still referred to in Russia as a “special military operation,” have taught Russians nothing, who remain convinced they “haven’t truly started anything yet.” Ukrainian drone strikes on Moscow and its suburbs have revealed how inversely proportional the level of Russian arrogance is to the actual state of affairs. There’s no concern for the protection of the population; the main thing is merely the reputation of being “invincible.” In Brief – about how time teaches Russians nothing, but their own leadership makes a mockery of them to their hearts’ content.

The Roof Blew Off

It seems the cries and curses of residents of the Kursk region directed at Muscovites, who genuinely didn’t understand what was happening beyond the MKAD, have come true. Residents of the Russian capital, on the night of June 18th, learned in more detail what drone engines sound like, what explosions (pardon, “cotton”) at an oil refinery (NPZ) look like, and how the authorities pretend nothing happened.

It’s unclear what angered Muscovites more: the fact that “oil rain” splattered the cars parked in their courtyards, or that the fabled Russian air defense managed to successfully hit an oil storage facility at the NPZ (even the z-propagandists admit the work of the “crooked hands” of the air defense crews). Nevertheless, propaganda attempts to shift the focus of the problem: the main thing is not the destruction of Russia’s largest oil processing enterprise, but the “successful repelling of the Ukrainian attack.”

The press secretary of the Russian president suggested to Russians (and this is not a joke) to watch footage of attacks on Ukraine and be impressed by that. “Look for more footage from various Ukrainian cities, the results of our armed forces’ strikes are impressive. These strikes will continue,” stated Peskov.

It’s unlikely that residents of the Moscow region can now be impressed by strikes on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra – they suddenly realized that two sides are involved in the war, and exchanges of strikes can be mutual. That the capital’s air defense is at zero, and Ukrainian drones can fly hundreds of kilometers unimpeded. That the lives of the residents of the “white-stoned city” are not so priceless, and their salvation is in their own hands.

But how to do it – nobody knows! For four and a half years of the “SMO,” Russians seem to have believed in their own immortality and that Moscow is beyond the reach of Ukrainians.

Even after the first flights of some UAVs that scratched the Kremlin on May 3, 2023, the hint was not understood.

For some reason, one should zigzag away from drones. Photo: stop-frame from video instruction

Ignore the Drones!

Instead, now the Russian leadership has decided to pretend to be aware of the problem. To begin with, they introduced penalties for those who photograph and video the flights of drones and the consequences of their work. However, the initiative immediately stalled: it’s hardly possible to catch all the migrants who photographed the burning “Sadovod” market. Several local bloggers were detained to discourage others. At the same time, there is no official ban on filming, so they could easily be charged with discrediting the army.

Then they advised not to pay attention to drone attacks, saying there’s no need to panic. If it’s at night – lie down and sleep, God willing, it will pass by. If not – you won’t feel it when you end up in heaven. Peskov’s spectacular statements are at this level.

In addition, towers for shooting down drones began to be installed in Moscow – right in the middle of roads. More precisely, they were installed, but they did not work against the arrival of UAVs in Kapotnya, where the NPZ is located.

Another equally spectacular initiative is to turn off road lighting on suburban highways near large cities to avoid giving “light references” to UAVs. However, this is the second part of the brilliant initiative “Let’s turn off mobile internet so drones can’t orient themselves.” How successfully these “sound ideas” counter drones flying by satellite can already be seen.

In the instructions for Muscovites, it is suggested to turn off the lights in the windows. Photo: stop-frame from video instruction

Study the Basics, Muscovites!

However, Russian authorities have no ideas about issuing UAV threat notifications. Neither via SMS, nor via internet applications, nor on social media – nothing. On social media, informed people claim that the warning system in the Russian Federation “does not function properly.”

Russians are also not prepared to recognize the danger as requiring, for example, the presence of shelters and refuges – not just underground parking lots. Residents of the Russian Federation themselves report that even the word “shelter” painted on a house wall does not mean that one is nearby, open, and equipped. There are no shelters, except for entrances locked with intercoms, and none are planned.

Security measures consist only of “frames” and bag checks at train stations and bus stations. What drone danger? No, haven’t heard of it, but someone could easily carry a grenade launcher on the Moscow-Syzran bus!

However, let’s be fair: a video guide has been released for Muscovites on how to behave during an air raid alert. It sounds mostly familiar to Ukrainians, though sometimes strange even to us. “Do not approach the windows” and remember “the rule of two walls” – that’s understandable, but “turn off the lights towards which drones are flying” or “run away from drones in zigzags, because they will hit you more accurately in a straight line”… It sounds naive, as if turning off the light in an apartment saved someone from fragments of a UAV or an air defense missile.

Well, one can advise the unalarmed Muscovites to also master the basics of life without electricity, water, and gas, without food delivery, car-sharing, and lactose-free options. Then it’s worth rereading the anti-drone safety rules for those on the road – traveling by train or car. Learn the street layout at least in your own district, find water supply points where you can collect at least technical water in canisters, and stock up on matches, candles, salt, and soap. There are still many acts of this crazy concert ahead, which is still called some kind of “operation.”

During a drone attack, it is recommended to open your mouth. Photo: stop-frame from video instruction

What Compensation?

And finally, two items from the “You couldn’t make this up” section.

First: one of the residents of the Moscow region was summoned to the police after a UAV attack. This was because he published a video of his damaged apartment: the explosion blew out the window frames, the floor was covered with glass and concrete debris. The police are currently conducting an investigation to see if the publication of the video of the damaged apartment violated the ban on disseminating the consequences of UAV attacks, introduced in the Moscow region on May 12. After all, the citizen only wanted to find out who would compensate him for the damage to his refrigerator, furniture, and personal belongings!

And second: after residents of Moscow and the Moscow region complained about “oil rain” after the Ukrainian attack on the NPZ, the Ministry of Ecology of the Moscow region stated that “no oil rain fell on the territory of the region.” Ecologists refuted the photos and videos of local residents about the “oil rain” with one weighty argument: it’s all fiction, it’s not oil, it’s soot!

Джерело: kp.ua