Trial and terror: Russia escalates Kyiv campaign

October 1, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Russia tightens the noose on Kyiv as winter approaches

On Monday, a Russian strike hit Ukraine's National Academy of Sciences in central Kyiv, killing two people. Oliver Carroll, The Economist's Ukraine correspondent, was 200 metres from the site. "I knew one of them," he says. "There's a sense all around that the net is getting closer."

That attack is part of a broader, deliberate escalation of terror against civilians that Vladimir Putin ordered earlier this month, according to Ukrainian officials who spoke to Carroll. The strategy has three prongs: intensified kinetic attacks, assassinations of political and civilian figures, and a stepped-up disinformation campaign. The immediate targets include data centres, internet providers, and supermarkets. "He wants to make people scared of going to the supermarket," one official told Carroll.

A new kind of vulnerability

The escalation builds on a shift that began in late July, when Russia started hitting warehouses, Black Sea trade routes, and hunting trains with a new generation of jet drones capable of tracking moving objects in real time. But the current campaign is different in scope and intent. Ukrainian officials told Carroll they are preparing for worst-case scenarios, including a mass exodus from Kyiv.

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What you'll learn

1 (01:14) **Episode Introduction** - Host Rosie Blore previews the show's segments: Ukraine's escalating civilian terror campaign, the backlash against smart glasses, and the history of the pen.
2 (01:47) **Russia's New Civilian Terror Campaign in Kyiv** - Ukraine heads into its fifth winter as Russia launches its biggest attack on energy infrastructure since spring, combined with a new strategy of escalating terror against civilians.
3 (03:21) **Three-Pronged Strategy to Destabilise Kyiv** - Ukrainian officials describe a coordinated campaign with three elements: kinetic attacks, assassinations, and disinformation, aimed at making life in the capital unbearable.
4 (04:37) **New Mismatch of Offence and Defence** - The Kremlin combines its classic winter playbook of targeting electricity, water, and sewage systems with a new defensive vulnerability: Ukraine lacks interceptors for ballistic missiles and the new jet drones.
5 (05:40) **Disinformation and Shifting Public Mood** - Russian disinformation efforts exploit corruption scandals, nepotism, and general chaos, as Ukrainian war fatigue and exhaustion replace the ideological mobilization of the war's start.
6 (07:10) **Ukraine's Preparedness vs. Vulnerability** - The capital and country are better prepared than ever, with decentralized internet, mobile, and data systems, but years of war have eroded reserve capacity, leaving Kyiv and Odesa with little redundancy.
7 (09:10) **Frontline Progress Contrasts with Home Front Crisis** - Good news on the front line, including a Ukrainian breakthrough near Lyman, is overshadowed by soldiers' deep worry about the deteriorating situation in the rear, as Russian military doctrine focuses on the capital.

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Show Notes

Russia has embarked on a new campaign to quell Ukraine, focused on supermarkets, playgrounds and other civilian targets. Our correspondent reports on the toll on daily life in Kyiv. Despite the backlash against “pervert glasses”, companies continue to develop AI-enabled smart specs. And how the pen changed history.

Guests and host:

Oliver Carroll, Ukraine correspondent
Henry Tricks, US technology editor
Catherine Nixey, Britain correspondent
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

Ukraine, Kyiv, civilian targets
Smart glasses, Meta, pervert glasses
Fountain pen, Simon Garfield

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