Russia’s Strikes on Ukraine’s Power Grid: A Question of Tactics, Not Revenge
UkraineSun Feb 15 2026
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Russia claims it is striking Ukraine’s energy sites as payback for attacks on its own civilians.
But the reality looks very different.
The Russian defence ministry said a big attack on February 3 was a “response” to what it called terrorist strikes by Kyiv.
That statement follows a pattern that began in October 2022, when Russia blamed its first big hit on the Crimean Bridge for a Ukrainian strike.
The story of retaliation is misleading for several reasons.
First, Russia started the full‑scale invasion of Ukraine; it cannot claim to be defending itself.
Second, the targets and tactics used by each side are not alike.
Russia’s long‑range attacks focus on civilian infrastructure in crowded cities.
On February 3, 71 missiles and about 450 drones hit power plants in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Dnipro.
These strikes often kill or injure people who live there, as seen in a recent drone attack that took the lives of three toddlers and their father.
Ukraine, on the other hand, directs its long‑range fire at oil refineries that supply fuel to Russia’s war machine.
These facilities are usually far from cities, so civilian casualties are rare.
The goal is to cut off the money and fuel that Russia uses to buy weapons and run its army.
The Ukrainian strategy is clear: hit economic targets that support the war effort.
In 2025, Ukraine struck almost 160 oil facilities in Russia, causing a fuel shortage and forcing Moscow to stop gasoline exports for part of the year.
The attacks have become more precise, even targeting specific refinery parts that are hard to replace.
Russia’s approach is the opposite.
It attacks homes, heating and electricity plants in order to break civilian morale by making life difficult during the cold season.
Experts say this is a deliberate tactic to pressure society rather than weaken an army.
The human cost of Russia’s strikes is high.
In 2025, the UN recorded over 2, 500 civilian deaths and more than 12, 000 injuries in Ukraine.
Most of these casualties happened because of Russian attacks on civilian sites.
In short, the narrative that Russia’s strikes are revenge for Ukrainian actions does not hold up under scrutiny.
The two sides target very different assets and aim at different goals, with Russia’s attacks largely targeting civilians.
