Russia’s offensive plans disrupted as key infrastructure, bases in occupied south get targeted

Petro Andriushchenko, head of the Center for the Study of Occupation, shared this information on Espreso TV.

“This is actually the second day of strikes on critical infrastructure, mainly in the Russian-occupied territories. At least three major substations have been hit — two in the Melitopol district of Zaporizhzhia region, and one last night near Henichesk, where a fire is still burning. As a result, most settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region and many in the occupied part of Kherson region are without electricity.

What’s happening is part of the effort to disrupt Russia’s preparations for an offensive in the Zaporizhzhia direction. These strikes not only create instability but also prevent repair bases and infrastructure from preparing armored vehicles for assault units. They also slow down Russia’s attempts to reintegrate the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant into its energy system,” he said.

Petro Andriushchenko added that the attack also offers a chance to significantly delay Russia’s efforts to reintegrate the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant into its energy system.

“This means the process will be postponed — something we’ve discussed for a long time with the Ukrainian Defense Forces as a way to prevent it. When we talk about critical infrastructure and the damage caused, we usually focus on blackouts and their impact. But several major Russian base locations were also hit, including one last night northeast of Melitopol,” he said.

The head of the Center for Occupation Studies said a Russian base is currently on fire, with a large amount of equipment and armored vehicles inside.

“We’ll soon learn the full extent of the damage, but there was definitely a hit. There were also strikes in the Tokmak and Berdiansk areas. Overall, last night saw numerous strikes across the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia region — from Rozivka to Melitopol. Again, the visible damage to infrastructure is just the tip of the iceberg. The real issue is why the infrastructure won’t function — there are no specialists or resources to repair the damage inflicted on the Melitopol substation,” Andriushchenko explained.

• On May 22, reports revealed that Russia is continuing to build power transmission lines from the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, including through the Mariupol district.
• By May 27, a new Greenpeace report confirmed that Russia is actively constructing a high-voltage power line in the occupied areas of Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions. The goal is to illegally restart the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) and integrate it into the Russian energy system.
• The IAEA believes there are no signs that Russia is preparing to resume operations at the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.