War in Ukraine: Russian bombings, strategic change… should the country fear the harshest winter in its history ?

If Kiev's incursion into the Kursk region surprised Russia, Ukraine fears winter in the coming month, due to the attack strategy adopted by Vladimir Putin's men.

Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko says he is pessimistic about the winter coming in the coming months. Soldiers and civilians alike should prepare for the cold, as Russia has decided to step up attacks on the country's energy facilities, reports Blick.

Targeted attacks

“We are on the eve of the harshest winter in our history”, these were the words of the Minister of Energy. And this fear is not insignificant, it comes after a change of strategy on the part of Vladimir Putin's army.

“A year and a half ago, Russia was mainly counting on the targeted destruction of transformers in substations so that electricity would not reach the end customer. But since the end of March, Russia has been massively using the most expensive missiles and cruise missiles in its arsenal to destroy hydroelectric, coal and gas power plants in a targeted and lasting manner”, explains Denis Trubetskoy, a political correspondent in Kiev, quoted by the Swiss media.

And it is true that in recent months, the bombings targeting power plants have become more and more precise and cause more significant damage. But what are the consequences of these Russian attacks ?

"Preparing"

The winter is expected to be difficult for both soldiers and civilians. The lack of electricity, light and heating is expected to have a significant impact on the daily lives of Ukrainians, as even heating food will become an impossible task. The cold could also claim many lives.

As for Volodymyr Zelensky's troops, they could also face major problems. “When it's cold, it's often easier to move heavy equipment on frozen ground. But there is also what is called friction, that is, the aircraft freezes, the supply routes lengthen and motivation decreases,”, notes Marcel Berni, a strategy expert at the Military Academy of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ).

The solutions for Kiev are meager. “Prepare yourself by getting generators, candles and power banks, because there is no escape here”, says Denis Trubetskoy.

Russia therefore hopes that Ukraine will deploy its air defense to protect the cities where the power plants are located, and thus weaken the front. If Kiev can count on the help of its allies to defend itself, the master of the Kremlin, for his part, has not abdicated and wishes to make his enemy live hell.