Russia is causing “indiscriminate, widespread humanitarian suffering across Ukraine” by targeting critical infrastructure as a weapon of war, according to UK intelligence.
The ministry of defence said Vladimir Putin is implementing its Strategic Operation for the Destruction of Critically Important Targets (SODCIT) plan as the Ukraine war enters its ninth month.
That has led to widespread power shortages across the country, bringing misery to millions of innocent civilians.
“Russia envisioned SODCIT as using long-range missiles to strike an enemy state’s critical national infrastructure, rather than its military forces, to demoralise the population and ultimately force the state’s leaders to capitulate,” said the MoD in its latest intelligence update.
“Russia’s strikes continue to cause power shortages resulting in indiscriminate, widespread humanitarian suffering across Ukraine.”
However, the MoD said “its effectiveness as a strategy has likely been blunted” because Russia has already used so many of its missiles against “tactical targets” elsewhere in Ukraine.
The MoD added: “Also, with Ukraine having successfully mobilised for nine months, material and psychological effect of the SODCIT is likely less than if it was deployed in the initial period of a war.”
The latest developments came as Putin launched a fresh crackdown on Russian dissent.
The country’s Foreign Agents Law, which the MoD says has been “widely used to repress opponents” of Putin’s regime, is being further strengthened from today.
At the moment, the law defines foreign agents as those “who have received financial support from abroad”.
Under the new measures, that will be expanded to include Russian residents deemed to be under the “influence or pressure” of foreign actors.
“The new laws will further extend the repressive powers available to the Russian state,” the MoD said.
The crackdown comes as the war in Ukraine enters its ninth month with no sign of a major breakthrough for Moscow.
According to the Ukrainian defence ministry, approximately 88,380 Russian personnel have been eliminated throughout the course of the war.
Ukraine also estimates that Moscow has lost 2,911 tanks, 5,866 armoured combat vehicles and 16 warships.
Russia also recently withdrew from the only Ukrainian regional capital it had conquered throughout the course of the war, Kherson.