By Putin, the freezing Ukrainians. The Russians are dying too

Russian attacks on the energy network are a military strategy with a clear objective: to weaken the Ukrainian energy system, destabilise society and force political concessions in the ongoing war. The strength of these activities increased importantly during the winter period 2025/2026. Moscow forces simultaneously usage drones, ballistic missiles and maneuvering to hit critical power installations.

Ukrainian authorities do not stay passive. Mid-January President Volodymyr Zelenski declared a state of emergency in the energy sector and set up a national centre for coordination of crisis actions. In Kiev, mer Vitali Klickko organizes heating points and “breakfast points”, where people can warm up, recharge phones and get help. A partial evacuation was besides ordered – as of January 9, about 600 1000 people (one 5th of the population) left Kiev, who decided to look for heat outside the capital.

At the same time, the government coordinates the restoration of energy supply, the acquisition of emergency generators, and moves energy resources where they are most needed. Many hospitals and critical centres have been equipped with aggregates, and energy companies are working continuously to repair damaged equipment.

Technicians, fitters and crane operators work 48–72 hours, moving from point to point to reconstruct power and heating in housing, hospitals and schools. Their work takes place at utmost hazard – at night, in the cold, under fire of drones and missiles – and yet they return to the next shifts, due to the fact that they know that all repaired transformer is simply a life saved. A fewer days ago, 1 of Ukrenergo's employees fainted from exhaustion during operations on the damaged object and died of electrocution. ‘Winter Putin’, as is said about the crisis in Ukraine, collects and so on.

Rescue service tents set up for people whose homes were powerless and heating after Russian rocket attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in Kiev on 22 January 2026.

Heat for Kiev

The planet is not idle. Poland is giving Kiev 400 power generators from state reserves to aid stabilise the basic energy needs of the inhabitants. Germany has allocated EUR 60 million to supply generators, fuel and another energy support measures to Ukrainian farms, hospitals and schools. The UK besides declared rescue support. In addition to authoritative actions, social initiatives are besides emerging. The “Heat from Poland for Kiev” run has already raised almost PLN 5 million to acquisition generators, thanks to contributions from nearly 40,000 donors.

Meanwhile, on the news front, Russian propaganda is trying to make a image of success – it triumphantly recounts reports of power outages in Kiev, suggesting that this proves the powerlessness of Ukraine. This communicative depicts the suffering of civilians as a consequence of alleged inability of Ukrainian authorities, not as a consequence of violent military actions. Russian media frequently underestimate the actual scale of attacks on infrastructure and effort to turn Ukrainian tragedy into a tool of propaganda and misinformation.

This communicative is double cynical due to the fact that at the same time the Russian authorities will not admit that their citizens are besides suffering from cold. Russian energy infrastructure, neglected and obsolete, is besides experiencing the effects of severe winter. In many regions of the Russian Federation temperatures below –30° C causes network failures, power and heating problems, affecting hundreds of thousands of average citizens. This is the essence of a government that invests in bombs alternatively of in the power grid, in panic alternatively of in thermomodernization...