Robert Brobdy, commander of the UAV division of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, is known not only for his military accomplishments, but also for his bravery. On November 1, Mr. Brobdy sarcastically warned on his social networks that Russians were preparing to live in the dark: “I’m not afraid of power outages, they’re just a little unpleasant… Ross.” bird Drone systems, along with the military’s other long-range Ukrainian capabilities, promise the Russians rapid adaptation, albeit somewhat forced.
Cities across Ukraine continue to experience widespread power disruptions this year due to Russian attacks on power grids. Power outages continue daily and last from four to eight hours. Some days are even worse. This Saturday, Russian bombers carrying 25 ballistic missiles and more than 450 bomb drones left Kiev without power for more than 12 hours. Centrenergo, one of Ukraine’s leading power generation companies, confirmed that operations at its thermal power plants have completely ceased.
People have become accustomed to darkness, but the cold season continues to be an inconvenience. If the power outage is particularly prolonged, the antennas that amplify the signal will no longer be able to operate, causing not only water pumps to shut down, but also heating systems and mobile phone coverage.
“We must understand that if we want to leave without light, we will do the same,” Volodymyr Zelensky said on October 8. The Ukrainian president told Brobdy as recently as November of this year that Moscow should be above all the place where “Russians feel the consequences of this war.” Zelenskiy’s statement came a day after an attack on the power system in Russia’s Belgorod region disrupted power supply and internet connectivity for 40,000 homes.
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Belgorod is a region of Russia bordering Ukraine. Russian oblasts closest to the battlefield, such as Belgorod, have been hit hardest by Ukraine’s retaliation, although they did not suffer the widespread power outages suffered by the aggressor countries. According to Brobdy’s statement, Ukrainian drones destroyed a power substation in the western Kursk region in the early hours of yesterday. That night, a thermal power plant was also damaged in the city of Oriol, 170 kilometers from the border. According to the version, a total of five substations were destroyed that morning.
The same thing was repeated the next dawn. Russian local authorities have confirmed that thousands of homes in southern Russia’s Kursk and Volgograd regions have been without power for the past three days after a Ukrainian drone crashed into a power substation. The next day, installation of energy equipment took place in Vladimir Oblast, east of Moscow (650 km from the Ukrainian border), and at a thermal power plant in Oriol Oblast.
The latest Ukrainian coup occurred this Sunday, targeting high-voltage networks in the Russian city of Taganrog, which borders the Donetsk region, leaving the city center without electricity. Early Sunday morning, Russian media reported that a Ukrainian missile had hit a power plant in the city of Vorones.
Although Ukraine’s response has resulted in fewer human casualties and losses than Russia’s, the eye-for-an-eye logic leaves questions about the laws of war. Since 2022, Kiev and the European Union have argued that Russia’s strategy of leaving its citizens without light or basic services is a war crime. The Ginebra Treaty epitomizes that it is a crime to use civilian infrastructure as a weapon or destroy it. As an example, on October 31, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned in a statement about Russia’s attack on a nuclear power plant that endangers its safety: “A deliberate attack on civilian energy infrastructure that directly impacts nuclear facilities invites the stigma of nuclear terrorism and constitutes a serious violation of international human rights.”
Ukraine’s Western allies avoid commenting on Ukraine’s strategy. Only in April 2024, during Ukraine’s first bombing campaign against Russian oil refineries and gas centers, Joe Biden’s Casablanca spoke out, believing that Ukraine’s strategy could destabilize the international oil market. U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Celeste Wallander further appeared before Congress in April 2024 and said, “We are concerned about this suggestion that critical infrastructure be attacked in connection with civilian objectives, because Ukraine adheres to the highest standards regarding the law of armed conflict, which is one of the elements of being a European democracy.”
A year and a half later, Ukrainian drones continue to punish Russia’s hydrocarbon industry even harder. The aim is to damage the country’s ability to export gas and oil (the main sources of income for the nation and ultimately the war machine), in addition to causing an increase in fuel costs for the population.
Brobdi units, unmanned drones of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense (GUR) intelligence service, and the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) are the three pillars of the Ukrainian Air Force and attack Russian industries related to oil and gas virtually every day, including in areas 2,000 kilometers from the border. “This is pure mathematics, our attacks have an impact more than sanctions,” GUR chief General Kirillo Budanov said on October 16.
It wasn’t until last spring that there was a lull in these long-range bomber engagements. In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a moratorium on attacks on Ukrainian power plants, a move also agreed with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, Kiev agreed to halt the use of long-range drones for Russia’s energy industry. The agreement remained tacit until last August, when a new offensive against enemy oil and gas was launched, the longest of the four-year war. Russia responded this fall by launching regular operations to destroy the invaded country’s power and gas networks. As a result, the noise of diesel generators becomes the soundtrack of war on streets across Ukraine.
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