Russia has ramped up attacks in recent weeks, using drone missiles and the experimental Oreshnik missile to target Ukrainian energy infrastructure in a bid to cripple the country’s power generation abilities before winter sets in.
In the past few days, Russia launched massive attacks on infrastructure sites, firing some of the largest silos of drones and missiles not seen since the initial invasion in February 2022.
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Netblocks said the increased attacks have been attributed to physical damage to infrastructure sites and emergency shutdowns.
⚠️ Confirmed: Metrics show a significant decline in internet connectivity in multiple regions of #Ukraine; the incident comes as Russia launches a massive missile-drone attack on the Ukrainian energy system with impacts attributed to physical damage as well as emergency shutdowns pic.twitter.com/QQTReYk5XB
— NetBlocks (@netblocks) November 28, 2024
The internet watchdog said that cities near the Black Sea, like Mykolaiv and Kherson, have suffered increased declines in internet connectivity due to power cuts caused by increased attacks.
Both cities are strategic assets Russia has routinely sought to target throughout the war — Kherson, with its proximity to both the Dnipro River near the Black Sea coast and the Crimean peninsula, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014; and Mykolaiv with its vital shipbuilding facilities.
Russian forces occupied both Mykolaiv and Kherson until the cities were liberated during Ukraine’s sweeping offensive in November 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy suggested this week that Russia has been using cluster munitions to target civilian infrastructure.
Cluster munitions, like cluster bombs, are dropped from planes or launched from the ground and eject smaller bomblets. These can spread over considerable areas. Due to their ability to maim or kill civilians, cluster munitions were made illegal under the Convention on Cluster Munitions, an international law Russia refuses to recognise.
“The use of these cluster elements significantly complicates the work of our rescuers and power engineers in mitigating the damage, marking yet another vile escalation in Russia’s terrorist tactics,” President Zelenskyy said.
“In all affected regions, the necessary forces have been deployed. Our power engineers and related services are working tirelessly to restore normalcy and support affected communities. Points of Invincibility have been activated to provide essential services. I extend my gratitude to everyone contributing to the restoration of energy supplies.”
Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure don’t appear to be slowing, with Vladimir Putin threatening to hit “decision-making centres, including in Kyiv” with its new Oreshnik missile.
The Oreshnik missile is an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) that unleashes its payload of six warheads, filled with submunitions, at speeds of Mach 10.
The Oreshnik’s speed makes it highly difficult to intercept. Putin said at a press conference in Kazakhstan this week that the kinetic impact of the missile alone is “like a meteorite falling.”
“We know in history what meteorites have fallen where, and what the consequences were. Sometimes it was enough for whole lakes to form,” Putin said.
Moscow has escalated its attacks in response to the US, France, and UK greenlighting Ukraine to fire their long-range missiles on military targets inside Russia
President Zelenskyy said Putin’s threats to mass produce more Oreshnik missiles “ensure[s] that President [Donald] Trump cannot succeed in bringing this war to an end.
President-Elect Trump has threatened to cut off aid to Ukraine to bring a quick end to the war. Putin praised the incoming US president earlier this week, describing him as “intelligent”.
“Putin is the only one responsible for this war and the only one who believes in it,” the Ukrainian President said. “His current escalation is nothing more than a strategy to exert pressure, aiming to force the US president to accept Russia’s terms later. We understand all the existing threats.”
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