Russia Has Changed its Tactics for Missile Strikes on Ukraine, Top Kyiv Advisor Says

Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the head of the office of the President of Ukraine, stated that  Russian military forces have altered their tactics for missile strikes on Ukraine by targeting civilian areas, in an interview with RBC-Ukraine. He went on to say that this new approach was trying to achieve several objectives.

 One goal, was to try trigger a reaction from Ukraine to try to stop the attacks, by forcing the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) to prematurely initiate the long-planned counteroffensive before it was properly prepared.

 Another possible objective, according to Podolyak, was to influence residents of Western countries who, in response to the continued killing of peaceful Ukrainians, would start to demand urgent negotiations for peace.

 Finally, by attacking civilian populations, the Russian military is attempting to assess whether it is possible for them to bypass Ukraine's air defense systems.

 On May 1, Russian forces launched yet another missile attack on Ukraine, with the AFU reporting that they had shot down 15 of the 18 missiles used. The bombardment resulted in two deaths and 40 injuries, as well as damage to an industrial facility and dozens of residential buildings in Pavlograd, in the Dnipropetrovsk region.

 This latest missile strike comes just days after an April 28 Russian army attack on several cities in the Dnipropetrovsk, Cherkasy and Kyiv regions. On that occasion, the AFU said they had been able to shoot down 21 of the 23 missiles fired. However, one of those that got through, hit a multi-storey residential building in Uman causing the deaths of 23 people, including six children.

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