The Kremlin is officially losing its grip on the domestic fuel crisis. As gasoline shortages worsen across the country, rising public anger over economic decay and the ongoing war is being met with immediate, heavy-handed police repression.
The latest example of state panic comes from Chita, Zabaikalsky Krai:
The “Crime”: Evgeny Zatonsky, an unemployed local resident, posted a message in a regional online chat called “Zabaikalyje Fuel Chronicles.” He suggested gathering 100 cars to block the roads near a Rosneft gas station to protest the lack of fuel.
The Punishment: Russian authorities fast-tracked his arrest, sentencing him to jail for organizing an “unsanctioned public event.”
The Bigger Picture: Rather than fixing broken supply chains and ending the resource-draining war, Moscow is choosing to jail its own citizens for simply pointing out that the pumps are dry.
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