Situation at a glance: Selenskyj: Russia must feel the war

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has described his military’s recent drone attacks on targets in Russia as a necessity. “The terrorist state must feel what it is like to wage war,” Zelensky said in his evening video message. Ukrainian combat drones attacked targets on Russian territory on Sunday night, including in the capital Moscow. The planning staff in Kyiv is now working to bring as many Russian military facilities, Russian logistics and critical parts of their military economy as possible within the range of Ukrainian weapons.

The constant Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities, and especially on civilian targets, have now led to fierce counterattacks. “We must bring the war home, to where it is being brought to Ukraine from.” This can now be achieved with the use of combat drones and the new Ukrainian missile program. “With our drones and missiles, we are able to fulfill some of the tasks.”

Nevertheless, Ukraine needs permission from the West to use heavy weapons against targets on Russian territory, Zelensky repeated a well-known demand. “In order to force Russia to make peace, to move from the false rhetoric of negotiations to steps to end the war, to free our country from occupation and occupiers, we need effective instruments,” he said. But this depends on US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. “Not a single Russian missile, not a single Russian attack should go unanswered.”

For the first time in almost two and a half years of war, Ukraine has caused significant damage in and around the Russian capital Moscow with a massive drone attack. In the southeast of the city of Moscow, which has a population of one million, a hit caused a fire in the large Kapotnja refinery – just 16 kilometers as the crow flies from the Kremlin. A power plant south of Moscow and a power plant about 100 kilometers away in the Tver region were also hit, according to Russian reports.

Forbes: Bad surprise for Russia

British business magazine Forbes has described the Ukrainian drone attacks against targets in Russia as a way to give the Russians a taste of their own medicine. Given the poor state and outdated technology of Russia’s power supply, the Ukrainian attacks could cause greater problems for the Russian population this winter than those experienced by the residents of Ukraine so far.

Looking back at the Soviets’ nearly ten-year war in Afghanistan, which contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union, the magazine considered how long the Russian population would be willing to support the war against Ukraine. “The most exciting question is whether the Russian dictatorship will survive.” If Russia loses, discontent among the public and the political elite could increase. “Continued economic sanctions and military losses could further burden Russia and give the political opposition or factions within the government the opportunity to challenge Putin’s leadership.”

Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities

Russian artillery and fighter jets have once again attacked cities in Ukraine. In the second largest city of Kharkiv, 47 people were injured when a Russian missile hit a shopping center. Only the day before, at least six people were killed and another 99 injured in a Russian air strike in Kharkiv. In Kurakheve in the Donetsk region, three people died in a Russian rocket launcher attack, local authorities announced in the evening. Nine residents were injured.

Authorities also reported repeated Russian artillery attacks in the Sumy region, injuring several people. All supplies for the Ukrainian troops that have invaded the Kursk region in western Russia pass through Sumy.