<p>Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was a severe breach of the international order. While the conflict has a wider international dimension, it is also fundamentally a conflict between Ukraine and Russia, raising important theoretical questions about the relationship between war, postcolonialism, and power. This paper analyses how Russia wields selected registers of power in the current conflict and the implications of their use for Ukraine and for Russia itself. The paper is divided into two sections. The first section discusses key elements of the relationship between postcolonialism and power focusing on sovereignty and biopolitics. The second section uses these insights to examine the war against Ukraine through this theoretical lens. First, it focuses on the sovereign externalisation of Ukraine in Russian politics, resulting in the use of violence and warfare. Second, it centres on Russia’s attempt at biopolitical internalisation of Ukraine through the reshaping of identities and the reframing of life in the temporarily occupied territories. Both forms of power are material and discursive. Finally, the paper considers the potential boomerang effect of the war in Ukraine on Russia itself.</p>