Russia Widens Attacks to Data Centers, Zelensky Says

Russia has expanded its attacks to include Ukraine's data centers and internet providers, aiming to cause maximum disruption to civilians, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. These strikes are designed to impact people's ability to stay connected, study, and work, he said.

On Friday, a Russian drone struck a business center in Kyiv, resulting in four fatalities and damage to a data center. Russia's defense ministry confirmed the strike, asserting that the facility was being used by Ukrainian military intelligence. The attack led to internet outages for approximately 100,000 households in Kyiv and its surrounding region on Wednesday. Some companies have begun relocating data from damaged servers abroad.

In the northwestern city of Lutsk, public transport information boards ceased functioning on Friday due to damage sustained by data centers in Kyiv from a Russian attack, according to city officials.

Zelensky stated on social media that Russia is continuously escalating its operations, viewing businesses, data centers, and internet providers as targets. He emphasized the need for a global response to what he described as Russian terror.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha noted that Russia's targeting of data centers aims to disrupt the flow of "life-saving information." He highlighted the critical role of rapid alerts for missile and drone threats in saving lives, stressing that data centers are essential civilian infrastructure, not military targets, vital for maintaining daily life.

While acknowledging the potential for localized disruptions and increased internet service costs due to repairs, Serhii Beskrestnov, Zelensky's top adviser on defense technologies, assured that Ukraine's internet network is highly decentralized and will remain accessible.

The Datagroup-operated data center, hit on Friday, had its specialists assessing the damage, but the company stated that all services were operating from backup sites. Russia's defense ministry reiterated its claim that the site was utilized by Ukrainian military intelligence.

Recent Russian attacks have also intensified on Ukraine's energy and railway infrastructure as winter approaches. Concurrently, Ukraine's military has targeted Russian oil refineries and logistics hubs, which they state help finance Russia's war effort.

In a separate incident, Poland's prosecutors have launched an investigation into an alleged arson attack on a Starlink satellite station in Wola Krobowska on Wednesday, suspecting the perpetrators acted on the orders of Russian special services. This station transmits internet traffic to Ukraine via SpaceX systems.

Several European NATO members have recently voiced concerns about potential Russian hybrid attacks, which Moscow denies. Germany has previously attributed an attempted drone attack on Leipzig/Halle Airport to Russia, and France has initiated a plan to protect its critical infrastructure and defense industry sites.