On Tuesday night, images were spread, still unconfirmed, of what appears to be heavy shelling of the city of Kharkiv in northern Ukraine.

- This is the type of warfare we also fear in Kyiv, says Lieutenant Colonel Joakim Paasikivi in ​​Aktuellt.

"Grind down"

It has previously been speculated that the Russian strategy was initially to quickly remove the Ukrainian leadership.

Ukrainian President Zelensky has himself described, among other things, how he is the primary target of the Russian invading forces.

If that strategy has now failed, there is a risk that Russia will return to its regular warfare model, says Paasiviki.

- Then they will start firing heavy artillery at Kyiv to slowly grind their way forward, the Russian steamroller, fight down the Ukrainian resistance, he says and continues:

- Then it will look like in Grozny during the Second Chechen War or in Aleppo (in Syria), says Paasikivi.

When you say "grind down", what do you mean?

- Then you will start firing with the artillery systems you have, howitzers and rocket artillery.

- There are also other models, cluster weapons where small grenades fall down.

It's a really awful situation.

Threatening column

In recent days, the outside world has been able to take part in a Russian military column rolling forward in the direction of Kyiv.

According to previous information, it was 27 kilometers long, but new images analyzed by the American space technology company Maxar Technologies show that it is several miles longer - 64 kilometers.

The column is apparently an additional threat to Ukraine, but so far it has not been shelled by Ukrainian forces.

Joakim Paasiviki says that one reason may be that you simply do not have the opportunity.

- I think that Ukraine has above all concentrated its defense on the eastern flank, Luhansk and Donetsk and the Russian border in the northeast.

Ukraine had not in the same way expected Russian troops to enter from Belarus, Paasiviki says.

Belarus's President Lukashenko has long been neutral on the issue.

- I do not think you simply have enough squad up there.