Former Gazprombank Vice-President Volobuev – on serving in the AFU, connections with the "Black Spark" underground, and abandoning his family in Russia

Igor Volobuev is a former employee of Gazprom structures who, after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, moved to Ukraine, obtained Ukrainian citizenship, and joined the AFU. He now serves as a junior sergeant in a drone operator unit. In May 2026, Volobuev became the public representative of "Black Spark".

"Black Spark" calls itself an underground Russian movement. Its members have claimed responsibility for a series of attacks on Russian oil refineries and the hacking of the website of Russian drone manufacturer "Alabuga". There is almost no accurate information about the organization; its size and composition are not disclosed. BBC sources in the Ukrainian General Staff confirm the existence of "Black Spark" and its cooperation with the Ukrainian side, but do not disclose details.

BBC: The "Black Spark" movement, which you represent, along with the AFU, claimed responsibility for the attacks on the Ryazan oil refinery on July 29. As I understand it, this is one of the largest oil refineries in Russia. Can you say what was the role of your movement?

Igor Volobuev: The Ryazan oil refinery is already the eighth plant that has been hit with the participation of "Black Spark". The first was the Ilsky oil refinery in the Krasnodar Krai. The second was "Kirishinefteorgsintez" in the Leningrad region. In June, there was "Taneco" - that's Tatarstan. Next were the Yaroslavl oil refinery, the Tyumen oil refinery, "Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat", the Omsk oil refinery, and now - Ryazan.

The plants I listed for you cover a huge territory. You need to know where and when to strike. "Black Spark", for example, is involved in identifying vulnerable sections of oil refineries.

BBC: How is the interaction between your movement and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the AFU structured? Who approaches whom?

I. V.: The "Black Spark" movement, in its time, approached the Defense Forces of Ukraine and offered its services and assistance. There was a long history, I won't tell you about it because there's also a verification process involved. The "Black Spark" movement went through this path, confirmed that they are indeed who they claim to be. And as a result, after a few small actions, trust was established between them.

When it comes to hitting targets that "Black Spark" cannot handle independently, maximum effect can be achieved with the help of the Ukrainian Defense Forces — in such cases, they cooperate.

BBC: You said "long history", but in this case, we don't want to rush. How did the verification take place?

I. V.: I cannot tell you anything about that. I don't know and shouldn't know how it is actually carried out. That's not my question. The main thing is that communication exists between the AFU and the "Black Spark" movement. They have a direct communication channel, not through me.

BBC: These are Russian volunteers, am I right?

I. V.: This is an underground movement. These are people who are citizens of Russia. They haven't left anywhere; they are all in Russia and have chosen precisely this method, which they consider the only effective one - forceful resistance to Putin's regime and strikes against its economy.

BBC: Can you tell us anything specific about them? Describe a typical representative? The size of the movement?

I. V.: They started working more or less actively and consistently somewhere around August of last year. This movement was created by a small group of like-minded people - they consider themselves part of the middle class. Now this movement has become much larger. I cannot give you a specific number, that's confidential information. But over the past two and a half months, since they became widely known, the movement has recorded a huge influx of new members who want to join them - from various regions of Russia. And it's no longer just the middle class; these are people from different social strata.

For example, there are IT specialists who know how to hack IT platforms. This greatly helps in their work.

BBC: Can you still give a number?

I. V.: I've already answered that I cannot give a specific number, but it's sufficient to carry out their actions in almost any region of Russia. Their main task now is to have their people in all constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

BBC: Am I right in understanding that the "Black Spark" movement has projects they do independently?

I. V.: "Black Spark" is a completely independent organization. They carry out actions not related to attacks on oil refineries absolutely independently.

Why is the word "black" even in the name? Because they believe that one of their main tasks is to hit Russia's oil industry as the "main lifeline" of the Putin regime, because oil brings the most revenue to Russia's economy.

This is an independent organization, not controlled by anyone from abroad, no matter which foreign country we are talking about now.

BBC: From your point of view, how effective are strikes on oil refineries for the course of the war?

I. V.: I believe they are quite effective. Since about last autumn, which means for quite a long time now, we have been observing how Ukraine has regularly started hitting oil refineries. The main goal is to deprive Vladimir Putin of his primary material resource. About 23% of the Russian budget comes from oil and gas revenues. And depriving Putin of the ability to constantly dip into pockets and pull out as much as needed for the war is worth a lot.

BBC: As an oil extraction specialist, do you understand how quickly an oil refinery destroyed by drone strikes can be restored?

I. V.: This is a lengthy process. Look, Ukraine primarily hits primary oil refining units. As soon as a primary refining unit at an oil refinery stops working, the entire remaining technological cycle stops. It's like a heart attack at the plant. Figuratively speaking, the entire organism is unable to function because of it.

An example is the Omsk Oil Refinery. In 2023, a completely new, modern primary oil refining complex with a capacity of 8.4 million tons of oil per year, costing approximately 900 million dollars, was put into operation there. This is very expensive.

It took almost four years to build - and it's put out of action in one fell swoop. Now this complex is not working, and it will take at least four months to restore it.

And we understand that if it flew once, then tomorrow - or the day after tomorrow - it might fly a second and third time. And here, Russia is in a very weak position.

The Ryazan oil refinery, which we also discussed, "Black Spark" participated in its targeting.

Why were these guys, these partisans, needed? They are able to penetrate inside, they are able to say that this particular installation, for example, is damaged and needs to be finished off in this way and there.

Let's count how many times the Ryazan oil refinery has been hit - several times this year alone. It is being finished off precisely with the help of "Black Spark", knowing exactly where to strike.

I understand the value of these people who are there in Russia, they are few and far between. There are always too few of these people who are capable of taking such a risk. To be honest with you, I've imagined so many times: if, God forbid, I get captured, end up in some Russian prison, it's a nightmare. I know for sure that I wouldn't endure it.

BBC: How did you become their representative?

I. V.: They came to me with this proposal themselves. To be honest, at that moment I didn't even know of their existence. They believed that we shared some basic common values. Although I am not ethnically Russian, I lived in Russia for a long time.

I belonged to the top management of Gazprom and Gazprombank. I also had no radicalism whatsoever. What I did, returning to Ukraine, to my homeland, was a forced step. If there hadn't been a war, I think I would never have left and would have stayed to live in Russia.

They also wouldn't be doing what they're doing if they lived in a normal legal country with alternating power, freedom of speech, and all other democratic values.

And the "Black Spark" movement believed that we had certain points of intersection. Among the members of the movement are people who are related to Russia's fuel and energy complex. There are even those whom I, as it turned out, knew personally when I was still living in Russia. This helped establish a certain trust because I knew the background of these people. At one point, we even organized a meeting - it took place outside Ukraine.

I won't hide it - they really wanted a person who already has a certain fame and reputation to speak on their behalf to build trust in them. Because many don't believe in the existence of such organizations. And here they needed someone who would put their reputation on the line and vouch with their name.

BBC: And they are responsible for their own risks.

I. V.: I am also responsible for my own risks. No one chose my path for me.

BBC: Do you use the knowledge you gained while working in Gazprom structures in your service?

I. V.: Sometimes, yes. I can offer information or advise my direct command, and the command can, if they find my proposal interesting, go higher, and others might be interested. But this is all at the level of my unit.

BBC: From the perspective of humanitarian law, strikes on oil refineries are borderline cases. On the one hand, oil refineries can be considered dual-use objects, on the other hand, they are civilian infrastructure. When a decision is made to strike, is the risk to civilian employees taken into account? What measures are taken to minimize it, if any?

I. V.: Let's not substitute the grief and suffering that Russia is causing with this war with "pseudo-humanism." Just so you know, it's a day of mourning in Kryvyi Rih. Because the day before, as a result of a Russian missile strike, a large family was killed - parents, their seven young children, and a grandchild who was only one and a half years old.

I believe that all Russians who remain silent, who do not notice this war, are - among others - guilty of these deaths. I would speak primarily about this, and not about how humane or inhumane the Ukrainian Defense Forces are in responding with their strikes on Russia's oil refining complex.

"Yes, I had a family, now I don't. But life goes on"

BBC: I might ask a few, perhaps sharp, questions. In a recent interview, you said that you have a family in Russia, but you believe that you "no longer have one." Is your family that remained in Russia also responsible for what is happening?

I. V.: How are they any different from all other Russians if they continue to live and work there?! That's why our paths diverged. This is my invalid family, this is my former family.

BBC: Did you try to explain your position to them? How did you generally decide to leave your family, move away, and start everything in a new place?

I. V.: In fact, on February 24, 2022, it was already easy for me to make this decision. It was instantaneous. Because eight years led up to it. Agree, that's quite a long time.

Living in Russia and continuing to work in a high position at Gazprombank, I increasingly understood that not just Gazprombank was not my place, but all of Russia was not the country where I should live, with which I should link my present and future.

Yes, the war started in 2014, but back then I thought it was a catastrophe, it was terrible, but not enough to leave. And so, our paths with my family diverged long ago.

BBC: In 2014 or later?

I. V.: Around that time. I offered them many times to leave Russia. We could have easily done it, we had all the opportunities for that. Honestly, I even dealt with this issue, friends found lawyers. Obtaining Ukrainian citizenship in 2014 was not as difficult and long as it was when I obtained it here, when the full-scale war began.

Yes, I believe I abandoned my family. I'm not justifying myself. Not everyone is capable of such a thing, and I believe there's nothing good about it, in fact.

But I don't regret what I did. It's much easier for me to live now than it was during those eight years. There were some material possessions I had, I lost them, and to hell with them.

Yes, I had a family, now I don't. But life goes on. I believe I am in my place, and beside me are people who think just like me. We have the same goals - we want to survive this war, we want to win this war.

BBC: And why didn't you resign from Gazprom in 2014 and continued working for a state corporation?

I. V.: What difference does it make where you work there?! You see, I had to change my whole life, I had to leave Russia. Imagine a person who tells himself: "You must break everything that connects you to this country," but at the same time, you have a family that isn't going anywhere and says it's their homeland.

Back then, between my family and this internal conflict, I chose my family. But on February 24, the situation changed. And at that moment, I made a decision for myself.

I just plunged headfirst into a whirlpool, jumped off a cliff, not knowing what awaited me. It was an abyss when I jumped into it.

Imagine: at 50, you arrive with nothing behind you. And I absolutely don't regret it - that's how easy and comfortable my life is now. Yes, I don't have the financial opportunities I used to, but I'm not begging. I serve in the army, I get a perfectly decent salary. It's enough for me to live calmly, to solve all current problems. I even always have money left over, I have nothing to spend it on.

When you live in Russia, everything hangs over you, they don't let you soar. Your family hangs over you, nagging you every day: "You'll abandon us, betray us, what about us?! What will happen to us?!"

Your friends and acquaintances whom you trust, who see your impulse and understand what you are ready for and where you are going, say: "Listen, you have something to lose, why do you need this at your age? Let others deal with it."

My situation here - the environment has completely changed. People risk their lives with me. They are ready to stand by you, covering your rear, your back, and go further with you - including fighting.

BBC: Do you allow for the possibility that someday in the future you will talk to your children and wife and find some common ground?

I. V.: Definitely not with my wife. Our paths diverged not to ever converge - everything was real, but it all ended.

With the children? I don't know. Perhaps. Will I be afraid to talk to them? Yes, I will. Because I understand what they will tell me, and they will be right. Because a father is a protector, he should be there, and he abandoned them. He decided that his homeland was more important, more precious to him.

And it's customary to say, "homeland is where your family is."

BBC: After 2014, when you worked at Gazprom, did you ever want to attend any protest rallies and pickets?

I. V.: In 2014, I participated in two "Marches of Peace" organized by Boris Nemtsov. When he was killed, I attended protests.

I ask people who tell me that I sat in Russia for eight years and did nothing: "And did you want me to continue?"

You know what really cuts me deep in Ukraine? There's one moment I encountered. Before I arrived, Zelensky addressed Russians. He said: "You must go out into the streets, you must demonstrate that you are against the war, and generally do something."

And so I arrive in Ukraine - and what do I face? On the one hand, they extended a hand and said: "Do something." And on the other: "We don't need you, you'll go back now, we have enough of our own. You can't fight, you're too old. We don't want to take any responsibility for you at all."

I was lucky, I found people who took responsibility for me, and now I bear responsibility for them. Because I understand: if something goes wrong with me, they will be reminded of it, they will say: "Listen, wait, why did you let him into Ukraine, into the army?! Why did you give him a weapon?!"

BBC: What do you personally want to achieve?

I. V.: I currently have no separate personal goals different from what we all want here.

And we want... you know, it seems to me, not even victory, but for them to leave us alone. I think every Ukrainian will be happy if Russia simply ceases hostilities and leaves.

No matter how many people I've talked to, I've almost never heard: "We must reach the Kremlin, we must destroy them all, burn them with napalm."

Mostly, I also share this opinion: "Leave us alone, you have such a huge territory, you have 146 million people, no one has such a territory."

Turn it into Switzerland, into Luxembourg, and all your neighbors, I won't be afraid to say it - even Ukraine - after, maybe, a hundred years will come and say: "Let's be friends."

For this, something needs to be done inside the country, not to enter foreign territory bringing grief and misfortune to millions of people.

Just leave us alone - that's all.

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