New phase of war as Ukrainian drones and missiles hit Russia daily – Politico

Retaliatory strikes on infrastructure

As the article notes, Russia's war against Ukraine for a long time stood out for Moscow's strikes on Ukrainian cities and the energy sector, with almost no response. The situation is now changing: Ukraine has increased production of long-range drones and missiles and is responding with strikes on targets inside Russia almost daily.

Thanks to its own developments and increased weapons production, Kyiv now systematically strikes not only oil refineries but also power plants and substations.

According to the BBC, this year, Ukraine has hit 21 of 38 large Russian refineries, putting about 38% of the country's refining capacity out of operation.

Frequent strikes on the energy sector have led to gasoline shortages and forced Russia to begin importing fuel from Belarus. At the same time, repelling attacks has become an element of Ukraine's deterrence strategy — to make strikes on Russia so painful that the Kremlin would reconsider its attacks.

Targets and Kyiv's strategy

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy explained the logic of the actions: "After all, we told them they must understand that if they want to impose blackouts on us, we will do the same. There are no secrets here." The main goal is to build such a powerful non-nuclear strike capability that Russia will stop striking Ukraine.

Zelenskyy stressed that the objective is to make the adversary pay the price for aggression while avoiding killing civilians: "The enemy must bear the cost of this war. But we do not kill civilians."

Production and international support

Ukraine is not waiting only for foreign assistance and is actively ramping up its own production of drones and missiles. According to the president, new models have appeared — strike drones and missiles, including cruise ones — and they are already being used against targets deep inside Russia.

The piece also highlights closer cooperation with US intelligence, which helps target and understand the enemy's intentions. "Well, intelligence agencies are cooperating very actively. But for us, it is more important that they help to understand Russian intentions, help with air defense," said one Ukrainian interlocutor who wished to remain anonymous.

Consequences for Russia and the Kremlin's reaction

Attacks on refineries and energy facilities have caused a fuel crisis inside Russia and hit the army's logistics. Putin described the strikes as an attempt by Kyiv to show its Western patrons some success, but promised that this would not help Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Ukraine is proving that it is capable of striking targets at long range — from ports to oil refineries far from the front line. This changes the balance of costs and poses new dilemmas for the Kremlin's war strategy.