Russia Targets Ukraine’s Digital Infrastructure Amid Escalating Strikes (Img: IANS)
Kyiv: Russia has expanded attacks on Ukraine's data centres and telecommunications facilities. The attack on critical infrastructure has crippled the internet and communication services in Kyiv and surrounding regions affecting over 100,000 households.
As per reports quoting Ukrainian officials, Russian strikes damaged data centres operated by internet providers in Kyiv. A Russian drone struck the Inkom business centre in the capital on Friday, where a Datagroup data centre was located. Four killed and facility was damaged in the strike. Datagroup said its services continued to operate through backup sites.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia widened its attacks to Ukraine’s data centres and internet providers, with the aim of causing maximum disruption to ordinary people.
"All this affects people's ability to stay connected, study, work," Zelenskyy said. ,He argued that the attacks have disrupted the essential aspects of everyday life.
Speaking on the attack Russia said that the Datagroup facility was targeted because it was being used by Ukrainian military intelligence. The Russian defence ministry confirmed the strike and said its forces had also targeted other data-processing and telecommunications centres, including New-Telco, United DC, Kyivstar and Parkovyi.
The latest strikes come as Russia continues attacks on Ukraine’s energy and railway infrastructure, broadening the scope of the conflict to the digital systems that underpin civilian services and modern military operations.
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Data and computing infrastructure have become increasingly important to military operations, as armed forces depend on large volumes of information, computing power and rapid data processing.
The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) has described Ukraine as fighting a data-driven and increasingly AI-enabled war. It has reported that the country’s strategic movement of data to cloud locations inside and outside Ukraine has helped maintain operational resilience despite Russian cyber and physical attacks.
Ukraine’s Delta situational-awareness system is an example of this digital approach. According to CSIS, Delta integrates information from drones, satellites, sensors and reconnaissance units into a unified operational picture, allowing military personnel to access near-real-time battlefield information.
CSIS has also documented Ukraine’s use of AI-enabled software to process battlefield information and support intelligence, surveillance and command-and-control functions. The increasing reliance on such systems means data infrastructure has become both a military asset and a potential vulnerability.
The attacks on data centres therefore highlight how the Russia-Ukraine war is extending beyond conventional targets. Digital infrastructure now forms an important part of the systems supporting communication, civilian services and battlefield decision-making.
