Russian fuel shipments to troops fighting in the Ukraine war have jumped to the highest level since the invasion began

© Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images Russian President Vladimir Putin Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images

• Russian fuel shipments to troops fighting in Ukraine last month hit the highest level since the invasion began. 
• A report from Bloomberg said Wednesday fuel deliveries to troops reached nearly 220,000 tons in September. 
• The move is part of Putin's full mobilization of troops as the conflict drags on into its ninth month.   

Russia is stocking troops fighting in Ukraine with fuel, with last month's shipments reaching the highest level since the onset of the invasion. 

A report from Bloomberg Wednesday said shipments of diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel touched nearly 220,000 tons in September, sent primarily to the six Russian regions that border Ukraine and the recently annexed Donetsk and Luhansk.

The uptick amounts to an a four-fold increase compared to a year earlier and even surpasses March deliveries. The volume data also includes deliveries sent to four major airports in southwestern Russia. 

President Vladimir Putin announced the full mobilization of Russian troops in the war effort amid strong pushback from Ukrainian forces. The increase in fuel to Ukraine-stationed troops is the latest signal of a strengthening Russian effort to resume advances in Ukraine. 

But the data only represents part of the picture, as total oil shipments for Russian military use in Ukraine could exceed the fuel deliveries. The figures reported by Bloomberg don't include pipeline flows and are calculated separately.