Russia’s strike on Sumy signals shift in war tactics, strategy — military expert

He said this on Espreso TV.

"By raising the stakes and increasing military-political pressure on both the United States and Ukraine, Russia is trying to show that if the Ukrainian side does not accept its ultimatum to withdraw the Defense Forces of Ukraine from the controlled areas of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions, the Russian Federation will further escalate strikes, primarily targeting the civilian population. Notably, this is not the first time. Cities like Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Kropyvnytskyi, and Odesa have been hit, with strikes exclusively targeting residential infrastructure. The civilian casualties are simply colossal. In this way, they are making it clear: 'We are changing the tactics and strategy of waging war.' The main focus is now on strikes aimed exclusively at the civilian population," he believes.

Military expert Dmytro Sniehyrov noted that he does not want to alarm the population, but there has been an increase in strikes using UAVs. He emphasized that the primary focus is on the use of drones because they are cheaper than missiles.

"The cost is around 30-40 thousand conventional units, while a single cruise or ballistic missile costs several million dollars. From an economic and pragmatic point of view, drones are more suitable. However, pay attention to the change in tactics and strategy of these strikes. Previously, 10-12 regions of Ukraine were targeted to scale the geography of strikes and exert psychological pressure on the Ukrainian population, showing that the so-called rear areas practically do not exist. Now, the strikes are concentrated specifically on regional cities. The goal is to break through Ukraine's air defense system and inflict maximum damage, primarily on the civilian population. Moreover, note that they have even begun using UAVs equipped with striking elements. This clearly shows that the civilian population is the target. This is the essence of the Russian side's tactics and strategy. To say that they lack the technical capabilities or that the Russian military-industrial complex cannot meet the requirements for scaling up strikes is simply untrue," he said.

The military expert also noted that the shelling of civilians has a demoralizing effect on the Ukrainian Defense Forces.

"When a Ukrainian soldier is in the trenches on the front line and does not know the fate of their relatives in the operational rear—understanding that such a concept as the operational rear no longer exists—it inevitably affects the moral and psychological state of our defenders. To say that this has no impact is absolutely untrue. The main objective of the occupiers in scaling up these strikes is to create distrust in the actions of central and local authorities and to provoke mass migration deeper into Ukrainian territories. This, in turn, overloads the logistics of the Defense Forces of Ukraine, which will be forced to focus on evacuating civilians, creating additional pressure on central and local budgets. The ultimate goal is panic, chaos, and distrust in the actions of central and local authorities," Sniehyrov concluded.

• On the morning of Palm Sunday, April 13, 2025, the Russian troops launched missile strikes on the center of the city of Sumy. As a result of the shelling, dozens of civilians were killed and injured, including children. 
• On April 13, it was reported that the mayor of Konotop Artem Semenikhin considers the head of the Sumy Regional Military Administration, Lieutenant General Volodymyr Artiukh, to be partially involved in the tragedy that occurred on April 13, 2025 in Sumy.