Russia is shifting the focus of its massive strikes to the water infrastructure of major cities.

The Russian Federation is shifting priorities in its campaign of massive attacks against Ukraine, concentrating strikes on water infrastructure facilities in major cities.

This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War .

Analysts note that such a change in goals effectively indicates the failure of the 2025-2026 winter strike campaign, which did not achieve the objectives set by the Kremlin.

“Russia’s move to a new set of targets is an admission that its 2025-2026 winter strike campaign has failed to achieve its objectives,” the report said.

ISW emphasizes that Russia could use the experience gained from the attack on the energy grid to plan strikes against water infrastructure. Both systems—the energy and water supply—were built during the Soviet era and have limited, yet critical, vulnerabilities.

Experts also point out that last winter, Russian drones, under certain conditions, were capable of damaging or even destroying infrastructure facilities, despite their relatively small combat load.