Russia targets Ukraine’s data centres

Russia has increased strikes on Ukrainian data centres and telecommunications facilities, disrupting internet access across Kyiv and raising concerns that Moscow is seeking to undermine Ukraine’s digital economy.

About 100,000 households in Kyiv and the surrounding region suffered temporary internet outages after strikes on Wednesday and Thursday, Ukraine’s digital transformation ministry said.

“Russia has targeted major Ukrainian data centres, seeking to disrupt the flow of information,” foreign minister Andriy Sybiha wrote on X.

Ukrainian officials and business leaders warned that Russia may be seeking to cause broader disruption, potentially threatening the digital infrastructure underpinning banks, online payment providers, businesses, government services and the military.

Russian strikes hit internet providers Pavutyna, Etherlink, Crazy Network and Utels, as well as hosting companies Cityhost and MiroHost, according to Ukrainian officials and the companies affected. Utels said in a Telegram post that “a data centre in the capital, housing Utels’ core network equipment” had been affected by a Russian strike.

Russian strikes on Wednesday also hit data centres in Kyiv, including one in the complex that housed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s campaign headquarters and where he celebrated his 2019 election victory.

Russia has hit Ukraine’s communications infrastructure throughout the war, but officials and business leaders told the FT that the latest attacks suggested a targeted escalation.

On Thursday, Russia’s defence ministry said it had hit the Kyivstar and Parkovy telecommunications centres in Kyiv, claiming that the facilities provided “communication services and computing power for the Ukrainian Armed Forces”.

The ministry also claimed its forces had struck a transport and logistics centre in Kyiv used to store and distribute the long- and medium-range drones operated by the Ukrainian army. Kyiv’s drone strike campaign over the summer wreaked havoc on Russian oil and gas facilities in an effort to disrupt the economic engine that funds Moscow’s war.

Wednesday’s Russian missile and drone attacks on Kyiv killed two people and injured 43, according to local authorities. Russia’s strikes on Thursday damaged railway infrastructure as well as residential and commercial buildings.

Zelenskyy has repeatedly urged allies to step up military aid to bolster Ukraine’s air defences. He welcomed Donald Trump’s promise to grant Ukraine a licence to manufacture Patriot interceptors, though the US president later suggested that he had had second thoughts.

On Friday, Zelenskyy said Trump had told him in New York earlier this week that he had “made the final decision, Ukraine will receive licences for the production of Patriot missiles”.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Sybiha said the strikes had also disrupted access to mobile alerts warning of Russian attacks, cutting off a security lifeline for many thousands of people.

“Rapid alerts about missile and drone threats are essential — they save lives,” Sybiha said. “This is critical civilian infrastructure that ensures people can access life-saving information. It is not a military target. It is essential to keeping everyday life functioning.”

Ukraine’s state communications commission warned of “temporary disruptions in network operations and access to telecommunications services”. Emergency teams restored some damaged infrastructure and networks, gradually bringing services back online.

But attacks on data centres could cause more consequential disruption than strikes on individual communications networks. The facilities provide the computing and storage infrastructure behind websites, corporate systems and a wide range of online services, meaning damage to a single site can affect large numbers of customers at once.

Ukraine’s government and economy have become heavily dependent on digital services in recent years, while banking, payments, commerce and state functions rely on interconnected telecommunications and data infrastructure.

The latest attacks raise the prospect of a broader Russian strategy to degrade that infrastructure, as part of an air strike campaign that has repeatedly targeted Ukraine’s energy system.

“As Russia isn’t achieving its goals on the battlefield, it is seeking new ways to destabilise life in Ukraine and terrorise civilians,” said Sybiha, as he called for more sanctions pressure on Moscow and more missile interceptors for his war-battered nation. “These attacks must not become the new normal.”

The extent of the damage remains unclear. Ukrainian authorities have not provided a complete assessment of the affected infrastructure.

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An incident in Poland on Wednesday also appeared to be part of Moscow’s campaign targeting Ukraine’s internet access. A fire broke out at a Starlink ground station near Warsaw operated by state-owned telecoms group Exatel. The facility supports satellite internet services across Europe and Ukraine.

Poland’s digital affairs minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said authorities were investigating the fire as “an attempt to disrupt the operation of a vital station that is crucial for the security and continuity of internet services in Ukraine”.

“This is an element of hybrid warfare and sabotage warfare,” he said, adding that “many signs point to the fact that such actions fit into the Russian doctrine of attack, though it cannot be stated with certainty today”.

Polish media quoted Prime Minister Donald Tusk saying he “doesn’t like to define without 100 per cent certainty what is sabotage and what is an accident” but “it looks bad”.

The Russian government has not commented on the incident.