{"id":1195490,"date":"2025-08-03T15:43:09","date_gmt":"2025-08-03T12:43:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uatv.ua\/?p=1195490"},"modified":"2025-08-03T15:43:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-03T12:43:14","slug":"what-are-the-goals-of-russian-state-terrorism-against-ukrainians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uatv.ua\/en\/what-are-the-goals-of-russian-state-terrorism-against-ukrainians\/","title":{"rendered":"What are the Goals of Russian State Terrorism Against Ukrainians?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The recent assaults on civilians across various Ukrainian cities illustrate the objectives behind Russia\u2019s campaign of state terrorism against the Ukrainian people. However, these are just a few among many instances that support the growing calls\u2014already echoed by several parliaments and international bodies\u2014for Russia to be formally labeled a terrorist state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russia\u2019s deliberate strikes on civilian infrastructure, hospitals (such as the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital), and the energy sector are systematic. They serve no legitimate military purpose but are intended to spread fear among the population and destabilize the country. This terror-driven approach stems from Russia\u2019s setbacks on the battlefield.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dive into this topic with\u00a0Petro Oleshchuk,<\/strong>\u00a0political scientist, Ph.D, expert at the United Ukraine Think Tank, in his\u00a0article<\/a>\u00a0for\u00a0The Gaze.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Firstly, Oleshchuk explains that on April 13, 2025\u2014Palm Sunday\u2014the Russian military launched one of the deadliest assaults of its full-scale invasion. Two Iskander-M missiles struck the heart of Sumy, destroying a trolleybus, residential buildings, and a university. The attack killed at least 34 civilians, including two children, and injured over 100 others (The Guardian). This was another deliberate act in Russia\u2019s ongoing campaign of state terrorism, designed to instill fear in Ukrainian society and pressure the country into capitulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That week alone, Russian forces targeted several Ukrainian cities. On April 9, 2025, missile strikes hit a residential area in Kryvyi Rih. The attacks on cities like Sumy, Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Mykolaiv are part of a calculated strategy of terror.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A similar atrocity occurred on July 8, 2023, when a missile struck Kyiv\u2019s National Children\u2019s Hospital \u201cOkhmatdyt.\u201d The hospital was in the middle of surgical procedures when the missile hit, killing children and medical staff and destroying essential medical equipment. The attack drew global condemnation and became a grim emblem of Russia\u2019s war against civilians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Secondly, political scients argues that since 2022, Russia has carried out a sustained campaign of attacks targeting Ukraine\u2019s energy infrastructure\u2014including thermal power plants, substations, and hydroelectric facilities. During the winter of 2022\u20132023, this left dozens of cities without electricity, water, or heating. These strikes continued into 2024\u20132025 and clearly demonstrate the hallmarks of state-sponsored terror, aiming to provoke a humanitarian crisis and exert psychological pressure on civilians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russia\u2019s large-scale missile strikes are not driven by military necessity but serve as a tool of blackmail. After repeated failures on the battlefield, the Kremlin has turned to terrorizing the civilian population as a way to “defeat” Ukraine. This approach reveals Russia\u2019s strategic weakness and its loss of momentum in the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal of this terror is to break the morale of the Ukrainian people, to instill fear, and to erode their determination to resist. Yet, as recent years have shown, these tactics have only strengthened Ukrainian unity and resolve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the expert summarizes that relentless attacks on civilians, strikes on hospitals, destruction of energy infrastructure, and blatant violations of international humanitarian law are all defining traits of a terrorist state. Russia is not merely breaking the laws of war\u2014it is deliberately using terror as a tool of state policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These crimes are neither accidental nor driven by military necessity. They are part of a deliberate strategy aimed at dismantling Ukrainian statehood and subjugating the Ukrainian people through fear and violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this reason, recognizing Russia as a terrorist state is not just a matter of legal justice\u2014it is a moral imperative for the international community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read the full article by\u00a0Petro Oleshchuk<\/strong>\u00a0on The Gaze:<\/strong> What are the Goals of Russian State Terrorism Against Ukrainians?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read also:<\/strong> How Sanctions Against Russia Taught the West Dynamic Financial Blockades<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The recent assaults on civilians across various Ukrainian cities illustrate the objectives …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":1195497,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[76,78],"sources":[],"class_list":["post-1195490","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-publications-en","tag-glavnoe-en","tag-homepage-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat are the Goals of Russian State Terrorism Against Ukrainians? - Freedom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uatv.ua\/en\/what-are-the-goals-of-russian-state-terrorism-against-ukrainians\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What are the Goals of Russian State Terrorism Against Ukrainians? 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