Russia Is Planning Its Most Powerful Blow Yet to Try to Freeze Ukraine

According to The New York Times, Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal showed the document to European partners in Paris two weeks ago, according to two people familiar with his presentation.[1] Those people told the Times that he described the document as an intercepted Russian plan to cause the energy system to collapse through methodical attacks.[2]The Times, which obtained a copy, reports that the plan describes a campaign of strikes using up to 1,000 missiles, drones, and bombs.[2] The paper says the most alarming part is Russia's intention to shut down Ukraine's three working nuclear plants "by firing missiles at the electrical switchyards that connect them to the grid."[2]The Times also reports that the plan names Ukraine's water system as a target, including pumping stations and wastewater treatment facilities[1]. According to the paper, Russia has never attacked such sites on a large scale before, and Ukrainian officials have privately expressed concern that the country has limited backup plans[1].According to the Times, the plan names Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odesa as top targets, with plans to cut electricity supplies in those cities by 90 percent[1].The Times says it had no way to independently authenticate the document, which is dated from August and written in Russian.[3]The Times also reports that strikes before dawn on Wednesday hit a large thermal power plant and other energy facilities[2]. Ukrainian officials told the paper this was "the opening salvo of a new campaign"[2]. According to CNBC, officials said seven people were killed in the latest attacks[4].