Russia advances as Ukraine devolves.
While the Ukrainian leader is going around the world showing off his defiance, back home things go from bad to worse: blackout and lack of heating, millions of draft dodgers, hundreds of thousands of soldiers going AWOL, massive corruption scandals unfolding… and of course, Russian forces keep advancing, even in the harsh winter conditions.
Russia’s power grid strikes paralyze Ukraine’s war machine
By crippling energy infrastructure, Moscow is dismantling the industrial base feeding the front
This shift marks a brutal new phase of ‘demilitarization through deindustrialization’ pic.twitter.com/nuJZnYTB7z
— RT (@RT_com) February 16, 2026
Besides that, the destruction of the power generation and transmission grids deeply hurts the means of production in Ukraine, which now not only face energy shortages but the energy itself has become economically unviable.
RT reported:
“Through a series of strategic strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, Russia is pushing the country back into the 19th century. […] Ukraine now risks devolving into a rudimentary agrarian society, akin to the poorest nations in Africa or Asia. Recovering from this could take years, if not decades.
Obviously, an agrarian nation cannot have a strong military. An industrially advanced neighbor will always have the upper hand, even when other conditions seem equal.
Russia’s goal is clear: demilitarization through deindustrialization. A rival with a crippled economy poses a significantly lower threat and becomes a greater burden for any potential allies. Moreover, rebuilding its military capabilities will require significantly more time.”
Russian troops liberated 12 settlements in the first half of February, bringing over 200 square kilometers under their control, Army General Valery Gerasimov announced during an inspection of the Battlegroup Center units:https://t.co/EqX47oxdli pic.twitter.com/RVKoDtYqTZ
— TASS (@tassagency_en) February 15, 2026
In the meantime, Russia’s army chief Valery Gerasimov visited his troops in the Donbas and announced that Moscow’s forces seized a dozen eastern villages so far in February.
🚨🇷🇺 Russian forces advancing along all fronts – Chief of Staff Gerasimov
◻️ Russia liberated 12 settlements in the first two weeks of February despite harsh winter conditions
◻️ Yug battlegroup is advancing toward Slavyansk
◻️ The heaviest fighting is taking place in Tsentr… pic.twitter.com/aNvJrIIleU
— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) February 15, 2026
AFP reported:
“Gerasimov visit comes days before U.S.-mediated talks with Kiev in Geneva on ending almost four years of war and ahead of the fourth anniversary of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
‘In two weeks of February, despite severe winter conditions, combined forces and military units of the joint task force liberated 12 settlements’, Gerasimov said.”
👊Our attack aircraft took advantage of the sudden change in weather during the battle for Pokrovka in the Sumy region
Warmer temperatures, high humidity, and rising fog prevented enemy drones from operating effectively. This also provided natural camouflage for Russian fighters pic.twitter.com/rrDZL2rCcn
— King Chelsea Ug 🇺🇬🇷🇺 (@ug_chelsea) February 16, 2026
Russian forces are advancing towards the last offensive in the all-important Donetsk Oblast: the Slavyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration, the last bastions in the region that is the cradle of this war.
“Russia demands that Kyiv withdraw from the Donetsk region for any deal to end the conflict — terms unacceptable to Ukraine.”
Moscow’s forces are around 15 kilometers (nine miles) from industrial hub Slovyansk.
“Gerasimov said Russia was ‘expanding a security zone’ in border areas in the northeastern Sumy and Kharkiv regions, where it controls pockets of territory.”
#WarData
⚡️ In the first two weeks of February, despite harsh winter conditions, 12 settlements were liberated, Valery Gerasimov stated.🔹 Other statements by the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces:
🔴 The Ukrainian Armed Forces are experiencing… pic.twitter.com/3pp202hYXG
— News of Donbass (@News_of_Donbass) February 15, 2026
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