In response to a letter by Professor Christian Enemark arguing that Ukraine's strikes on Moscow are not justified, several readers have countered that targeting Russian fuel facilities is a legitimate and necessary part of Ukraine's defence strategy.
Strikes on Dual-Use Infrastructure Are Legal
Tim Dee-McCullough from Windsor, Berkshire, writes that Professor Enemark's position, while morally consistent, is disconnected from strategic realities. He argues that Russian civilians bear moral agency by funding and supporting the war. Strikes on oil refineries and energy facilities are not "morale bombing" but attacks on dual-use industrial infrastructure that directly enables the Russian war effort, which international humanitarian law recognises as potentially legitimate if proportionate.
"If bringing the costs of that war home to Russian society accelerates its end, the calculus of harm may well favour such a strategy," Dee-McCullough writes.
Attacks Save Lives in Ukraine
Dr Natalie Kopytko, a lecturer at the University of Leeds, argues that Ukraine's strikes target Russia's ability to fuel its attacks. She notes that injuries from the 18 June strike on the Moscow oil refinery likely resulted from air defence debris, not deliberate targeting. "If Russia wants to protect its civilians, it should let Ukraine hit targets or, even better, the most moral act would be to withdraw from Ukraine's territory entirely," she writes.
Dr Kopytko adds that these attacks force Russia to move air defence systems to Moscow, leaving gaps that Ukraine can exploit to liberate occupied territories. "These attacks save thousands of lives for every 'ordinary Russian's' shoulder injury," she states.
False Moral Equivalency
Nathan Gabriel Wood, executive director of the International Society for Military Ethics in Europe, argues that Ukraine's drone attack on the Moscow oil refinery was highly discriminate, with nearly all drones hitting the refinery. He rejects Professor Enemark's claim of a "false moral equivalency" between Russia and Ukraine, citing documented Russian war crimes including targeting civilians, torture, and kidnapping children.
"Ukraine precisely striking core pillars of the Russian economy that directly feed into ongoing wartime efforts is exactly what Volodymyr Zelenskyy says they are, 'long-range sanctions' on the Russian war machine," Wood writes.
