The strikes, which began on 29 December and have killed dozens of civilians, offer an early and grim taste of what may lie ahead, as Moscow signals it has the capacity for a long and brutal war in Ukraine.
While western intelligence officials once predicted that the Russian military would soon exhaust its combat capabilities and be forced to bring its offensive to a grinding halt, Moscow has managed to mobilise its industrial base, producing significantly more than before the war. It has doubled its defence budget to support the war and regenerate some of its lost combat power. Its production of long-range missiles used on Ukrainians is now more than 100 a month, up from about 40, Bronk said.
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