On Jan. 18, a wayward Russian missile struck an apartment in Dnipro, Ukraine. While the weekend’s strike was targeting the power grid, Russia’s Kh-22 missile is “notoriously inaccurate” when it comes to land targets, having first been designed for naval warfare. 

The missile is controlled by a simple form of radar that’s meant to find ships against water, not specific buildings in a city. Kh-22 missiles descend from a high altitude, which makes it hard for Ukraine’s air defense system to strike them down. The use of naval munitions like the Kh-22 lends credence to the idea that Russian ammo stocks are on their last legs. 

At least 45 people were killed in the strike, destroying nearby apartment buildings. These winter strikes are continuing alongside a buildup of military forces meant to replace those lost during the first year of the war. The Russian Minister of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, announced that the size of the army would increase from 1.15 million to 1.5 million alongside a new army corps and five new divisions. 

Attacks on civilian infrastructure have become increasingly common with the leadership of Sergei Suroviki (since replaced by Valery Gerasimov), with anything from missile strikes to kamikaze drones. As Russia becomes increasingly more desperate to hobble Ukraine at any cost, more attacks of this nature can be expected.