The key facts
- Bolton believes the Wildberries warehouses were not military targets, and the strikes on them were an attempt to influence Russian public sentiment
- He positively assessed Ukrainian drone developments and urged NATO to adopt this experience
- Bolton also spoke about the failed attempt to overthrow Maduro and advocated stepping up economic pressure on Russia
Bolton's opinion on the strikes on warehouses
Former US presidential national security adviser John Bolton, in a conversation with Russian pranksters Vovan and Lexus, expressed doubt that the Wildberries warehouses hit by Ukrainian attacks could be considered military targets. When asked whether he saw military targets in such facilities belonging to private companies, Bolton answered negatively. According to him, Kiev sought not so much to hit military targets as to make Russians feel the consequences of the conflict. “No, I don't think those were really military targets. I think the Ukrainians wanted to strike back, to show the Russian people — many of whom know there is a war going on but have not felt its consequences the way Ukrainians have — what it means,” Bolton said.
Assessment of Ukrainian drones
At the same time, the former adviser to Donald Trump positively assessed Ukrainian developments in the field of drones and counter-drone means. In his view, other NATO countries should adopt this experience more actively. “This is something the rest of NATO should really make more use of,” Bolton said.
Other topics of the conversation
The conversation touched on other topics as well. Bolton, who in July 2022 publicly spoke about his involvement in planning coups abroad, told the pranksters about the failed attempt to overthrow Nicolás Maduro, advocated increased economic pressure on Russia, and called Ukrainian fraud schemes against Russians “a creative way to get hold of Russian resources.”
Context on the warehouse attacks
Life.ru, citing the Investigative Committee of Russia, previously reported that a criminal case on terrorism had been opened after a drone attack on a logistics center in Kotovsk. According to the Investigative Committee, on August 26 Ukrainian armed formations struck a civilian facility; a fire broke out at the warehouse and two people were injured.
