Latest news with #MaximStarchak
Kuwait Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Kuwait Times
Ukrainian drone attacks in Russia shake up conflict
PARIS: Ukraine managed to not only humiliate the Kremlin by boasting of taking out more than a third of all Russian missile carriers in a spectacular drone attack but also to rewrite the rules of modern warfare, analysts say. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, Kyiv used inexpensive drones at the weekend to destroy Russian nuclear-capable bombers worth billions of dollars in an operation carried out after months of planning. 'Spider's Web' dealt a blow to Russia more than three years after its invasion of Ukraine, and the operation will now be studied closely by militaries around the world as a new strategy in asymmetric warfare. Ukraine said it destroyed $7 billion worth of Russian aircraft parked at airbases thousands of kilometers across the border, mainly Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range strategic bombers. While the attacks at Belaya deep in Siberia and Olenya on the Kola Peninsula in the Arctic circle are unlikely to change to course of the war, they will limit Moscow's ability to launch long-range missile strikes against Ukraine. Yohann Michel, a researcher at the French university Lyon-3, said the loss of the aircraft was 'a serious blow to Russian offensive capabilities'. 'The main impact could be felt in several weeks' time with a reduction in the number of sorties by the rest of the fleet' due to difficulties in finding spare parts for the Soviet-era planes, which are no longer in production, he told AFP. Maxim Starchak, a fellow at the Centre for International and Defence Policy at Queen's University in Canada, said it would take Russia a long time to replace the lost aircraft. 'Russia is extremely slow and inefficient in developing new aircraft for its nuclear forces,' he told AFP. New way of waging war The drones, launched from trucks in the immediate vicinity of air bases deep inside Russia, destroyed or damaged aircraft parked in the open. Congratulating Ukraine's security service chief Vasyl Malyuk, President Volodymyr Zelensky said it had taken 18 months of preparation for the 117 drones to be concealed inside trucks close to the airbases, and that all the Ukrainian agents had safely left Russia. Michael Shurkin, a former CIA officer, said Ukraine's operation was likely to have struck fear into militaries across the world, adding that potential targets for such drone attacks could include refineries, ballistic missile silos or military bases. 'This technology is akin to stealth technology: The threat is difficult to detect both because it emerges near the target and is too small and too low to be picked up by sensors designed to catch aircraft or missiles,' said Shurkin, director of global programs for the consultancy 14 North Strategies. Ukrainian military analyst Oleksii Kopytko said anyone delivering a pizza or driving a horse-drawn cart could present a danger. 'The organizers and main perpetrators are essentially untraceable,' he said. A French arms manufacturing executive said Ukraine could even have trained AI algorithms to recognize aircraft or guide the drones in case of jamming. 'New tools are forcing us to completely rethink defense systems and how they are produced,' said the executive, who asked not to be named. 'It opens up possibilities that we hadn't even imagined.' Zelensky 'just proved that he and Ukraine are more than able to pull aces out of their combat fatigue sleeves,' said Timothy Ash, an emerging market economist focused on Russia. The attacks exposed Russia's air base vulnerabilities, in a massive morale boost for Kyiv after months on the backfoot in the conflict. 'The protection of military air bases does not meet security requirements,' said Starchak. 'The dispersal of military aircraft across different airfields did not help either.' Russia's vast size is also a disadvantage here. 'Usually, the vastness of Russia's territory is an advantage; you can hide your bombers thousands of kilometres away where they would be safe,' said Michel. 'The problem is that this means you have to monitor thousands of square kilometers, which is simply impossible.' The attacks dealt a blow to Moscow's nuclear triad of ground, sea and air-launched missiles, said Starchak. If it was possible to target an airbase it is also possible to hit bases hosting nuclear submarines, Starchak said. 'An attack on long-range aircraft bases is a potential threat to the entire nuclear triad, which can be easily hit, thereby weakening it to the point that it cannot respond with a nuclear strike.' John Herbst, senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center, said that Ukraine's operation gave US President Donald Trump leverage against Russia's Vladimir Putin in search of a settlement. 'It is a strong counter to the dubious 'common wisdom' that the war is moving inevitably in Moscow's favor,' wrote the former US ambassador to Ukraine. — AFP
Japan Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
'Aces up the sleeve': Ukraine drone attacks in Russia shake up conflict
Ukraine managed to not only humiliate the Kremlin by boasting of taking out more than a third of all Russian missile carriers in a spectacular drone attack but also to rewrite the rules of modern warfare, analysts say. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, Kyiv used inexpensive drones at the weekend to destroy Russian nuclear-capable bombers worth billions of dollars in an operation carried out after months of planning. "Spider's Web" dealt a blow to Russia more than three years after its invasion of Ukraine, and the operation will now be studied closely by militaries around the world as a new strategy in asymmetric warfare. Ukraine said it destroyed $7 billion worth of Russian aircraft parked at airbases thousands of kilometers across the border, mainly Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range strategic bombers. While the attacks at Belaya deep in Siberia and Olenya on the Kola Peninsula in the Arctic circle are unlikely to change to course of the war, they will limit Moscow's ability to launch long-range missile strikes against Ukraine. Yohann Michel, a researcher at the French university Lyon-3, said the loss of the aircraft was "a serious blow to Russian offensive capabilities." "The main impact could be felt in several weeks' time with a reduction in the number of sorties by the rest of the fleet" due to difficulties in finding spare parts for the Soviet-era planes, which are no longer in production, he said. Maxim Starchak, a fellow at the Center for International and Defense Policy at Queen's University in Canada, said it would take Russia a long time to replace the lost aircraft. "Russia is extremely slow and inefficient in developing new aircraft for its nuclear forces," he said. New way of waging war The drones, launched from trucks in the immediate vicinity of air bases deep inside Russia, destroyed or damaged aircraft parked in the open. Congratulating Ukraine's security service chief Vasyl Malyuk, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said it had taken 18 months of preparation for the 117 drones to be concealed inside trucks close to the airbases, and that all the Ukrainian agents had safely left Russia. A satellite image shows pre-strike and post-strike images of the Ivanovo Airbase east of Moscow. | 2025 PLANET LABS PBC / via AFP-Jiji Michael Shurkin, a former CIA officer, said Ukraine's operation was likely to have struck fear into militaries across the world, adding that potential targets for such drone attacks could include refineries, ballistic missile silos or military bases. "This technology is akin to stealth technology: The threat is difficult to detect both because it emerges near the target and is too small and too low to be picked up by sensors designed to catch aircraft or missiles," said Shurkin, director of global programs for the consultancy 14 North Strategies. Ukrainian military analyst Oleksii Kopytko said anyone delivering a pizza or driving a horse-drawn cart could present a danger. "The organizers and main perpetrators are essentially untraceable," he said. A French arms manufacturing executive said Ukraine could even have trained AI algorithms to recognize aircraft or guide the drones in case of jamming. "New tools are forcing us to completely rethink defense systems and how they are produced," said the executive, who asked not to be named. "It opens up possibilities that we hadn't even imagined." Zelenskyy "just proved that he and Ukraine are more than able to pull aces out of their combat fatigue sleeves," said Timothy Ash, an emerging market economist focused on Russia. 'Did not help' The attacks exposed Russia's air base vulnerabilities, in a massive morale boost for Kyiv after months on the backfoot in the conflict. "The protection of military air bases does not meet security requirements," said Starchak. "The dispersal of military aircraft across different airfields did not help either." Russia's vast size is also a disadvantage here. "Usually, the vastness of Russia's territory is an advantage; you can hide your bombers thousands of kilometers away where they would be safe," said Michel. "The problem is that this means you have to monitor thousands of square kilometers, which is simply impossible." The attacks dealt a blow to Moscow's nuclear triad of ground, sea and air-launched missiles, said Starchak. If it was possible to target an airbase it is also possible to hit bases hosting nuclear submarines, Starchak said. "An attack on long-range aircraft bases is a potential threat to the entire nuclear triad, which can be easily hit, thereby weakening it to the point that it cannot respond with a nuclear strike." John Herbst, senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center, said that Ukraine's operation gave U.S. President Donald Trump leverage against Russia's Vladimir Putin in search of a settlement. "It is a strong counter to the dubious 'common wisdom' that the war is moving inevitably in Moscow's favor," wrote the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Aces up the sleeve': Ukraine drone attacks in Russia shake up conflict
Ukraine managed to not only humiliate the Kremlin by boasting of taking out more than a third of all Russian missile carriers in a spectacular drone attack but also to rewrite the rules of modern warfare, analysts say. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, Kyiv used inexpensive drones at the weekend to destroy Russian nuclear-capable bombers worth billions of dollars in an operation carried out after months of planning. "Spider's Web" dealt a blow to Russia more than three years after its invasion of Ukraine, and the operation will now be studied closely by militaries around the world as a new strategy in asymmetric warfare. Ukraine said it destroyed $7 billion worth of Russian aircraft parked at airbases thousands of kilometres across the border, mainly Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range strategic bombers. While the attacks at Belaya deep in Siberia and Olenya on the Kola Peninsula in the Arctic circle are unlikely to change to course of the war, they will limit Moscow's ability to launch long-range missile strikes against Ukraine. Yohann Michel, a researcher at the French university Lyon-3, said the loss of the aircraft was "a serious blow to Russian offensive capabilities". "The main impact could be felt in several weeks' time with a reduction in the number of sorties by the rest of the fleet" due to difficulties in finding spare parts for the Soviet-era planes, which are no longer in production, he told AFP. Maxim Starchak, a fellow at the Centre for International and Defence Policy at Queen's University in Canada, said it would take Russia a long time to replace the lost aircraft. "Russia is extremely slow and inefficient in developing new aircraft for its nuclear forces," he told AFP. - New way of waging war - The drones, launched from trucks in the immediate vicinity of air bases deep inside Russia, destroyed or damaged aircraft parked in the open. Congratulating Ukraine's security service chief Vasyl Malyuk, President Volodymyr Zelensky said it had taken 18 months of preparation for the 117 drones to be concealed inside trucks close to the airbases, and that all the Ukrainian agents had safely left Russia. Michael Shurkin, a former CIA officer, said Ukraine's operation was likely to have struck fear into militaries across the world, adding that potential targets for such drone attacks could include refineries, ballistic missile silos or military bases. "This technology is akin to stealth technology: The threat is difficult to detect both because it emerges near the target and is too small and too low to be picked up by sensors designed to catch aircraft or missiles," said Shurkin, director of global programs for the consultancy 14 North Strategies. Ukrainian military analyst Oleksii Kopytko said anyone delivering a pizza or driving a horse-drawn cart could present a danger. "The organisers and main perpetrators are essentially untraceable," he said. A French arms manufacturing executive said Ukraine could even have trained AI algorithms to recognise aircraft or guide the drones in case of jamming. "New tools are forcing us to completely rethink defence systems and how they are produced," said the executive, who asked not to be named. "It opens up possibilities that we hadn't even imagined." Zelensky "just proved that he and Ukraine are more than able to pull aces out of their combat fatigue sleeves," said Timothy Ash, an emerging market economist focused on Russia. - 'Did not help' - The attacks exposed Russia's air base vulnerabilities, in a massive morale boost for Kyiv after months on the backfoot in the conflict. "The protection of military air bases does not meet security requirements," said Starchak. "The dispersal of military aircraft across different airfields did not help either." Russia's vast size is also a disadvantage here. "Usually, the vastness of Russia's territory is an advantage; you can hide your bombers thousands of kilometres away where they would be safe," said Michel. "The problem is that this means you have to monitor thousands of square kilometres, which is simply impossible." The attacks dealt a blow to Moscow's nuclear triad of ground, sea and air-launched missiles, said Starchak. If it was possible to target an airbase it is also possible to hit bases hosting nuclear submarines, Starchak said. "An attack on long-range aircraft bases is a potential threat to the entire nuclear triad, which can be easily hit, thereby weakening it to the point that it cannot respond with a nuclear strike." John Herbst, senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center, said that Ukraine's operation gave US President Donald Trump leverage against Russia's Vladimir Putin in search of a settlement. "It is a strong counter to the dubious 'common wisdom' that the war is moving inevitably in Moscow's favour," wrote the former US ambassador to Ukraine mra-dla-as/sjw/jxb
France 24
4 days ago
- Politics
- France 24
'Aces up the sleeve': Ukraine drone attacks in Russia shake up conflict
Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, Kyiv used inexpensive drones at the weekend to destroy Russian nuclear-capable bombers worth billions of dollars in an operation carried out after months of planning. "Spider's Web" dealt a blow to Russia more than three years after its invasion of Ukraine, and the operation will now be studied closely by militaries around the world as a new strategy in asymmetric warfare. Ukraine said it destroyed $7 billion worth of Russian aircraft parked at airbases thousands of kilometres across the border, mainly Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range strategic bombers. While the attacks at Belaya deep in Siberia and Olenya on the Kola Peninsula in the Arctic circle are unlikely to change to course of the war, they will limit Moscow's ability to launch long-range missile strikes against Ukraine. Yohann Michel, a researcher at the French university Lyon-3, said the loss of the aircraft was "a serious blow to Russian offensive capabilities". "The main impact could be felt in several weeks' time with a reduction in the number of sorties by the rest of the fleet" due to difficulties in finding spare parts for the Soviet-era planes, which are no longer in production, he told AFP. Maxim Starchak, a fellow at the Centre for International and Defence Policy at Queen's University in Canada, said it would take Russia a long time to replace the lost aircraft. "Russia is extremely slow and inefficient in developing new aircraft for its nuclear forces," he told AFP. - New way of waging war - The drones, launched from trucks in the immediate vicinity of air bases deep inside Russia, destroyed or damaged aircraft parked in the open. Congratulating Ukraine's security service chief Vasyl Malyuk, President Volodymyr Zelensky said it had taken 18 months of preparation for the 117 drones to be concealed inside trucks close to the airbases, and that all the Ukrainian agents had safely left Russia. Michael Shurkin, a former CIA officer, said Ukraine's operation was likely to have struck fear into militaries across the world, adding that potential targets for such drone attacks could include refineries, ballistic missile silos or military bases. "This technology is akin to stealth technology: The threat is difficult to detect both because it emerges near the target and is too small and too low to be picked up by sensors designed to catch aircraft or missiles," said Shurkin, director of global programs for the consultancy 14 North Strategies. Ukrainian military analyst Oleksii Kopytko said anyone delivering a pizza or driving a horse-drawn cart could present a danger. "The organisers and main perpetrators are essentially untraceable," he said. A French arms manufacturing executive said Ukraine could even have trained AI algorithms to recognise aircraft or guide the drones in case of jamming. "New tools are forcing us to completely rethink defence systems and how they are produced," said the executive, who asked not to be named. "It opens up possibilities that we hadn't even imagined." Zelensky "just proved that he and Ukraine are more than able to pull aces out of their combat fatigue sleeves," said Timothy Ash, an emerging market economist focused on Russia. 'Did not help' The attacks exposed Russia's air base vulnerabilities, in a massive morale boost for Kyiv after months on the backfoot in the conflict. "The protection of military air bases does not meet security requirements," said Starchak. "The dispersal of military aircraft across different airfields did not help either." Russia's vast size is also a disadvantage here. "Usually, the vastness of Russia's territory is an advantage; you can hide your bombers thousands of kilometres away where they would be safe," said Michel. "The problem is that this means you have to monitor thousands of square kilometres, which is simply impossible." The attacks dealt a blow to Moscow's nuclear triad of ground, sea and air-launched missiles, said Starchak. If it was possible to target an airbase it is also possible to hit bases hosting nuclear submarines, Starchak said. "An attack on long-range aircraft bases is a potential threat to the entire nuclear triad, which can be easily hit, thereby weakening it to the point that it cannot respond with a nuclear strike." John Herbst, senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center, said that Ukraine's operation gave US President Donald Trump leverage against Russia's Vladimir Putin in search of a settlement. © 2025 AFP
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The rudimentary drone-plane threatening Putin's energy empire
When Russian troops approached an upside-down Ukrainian plane 1,000km from its homeland, something was missing: its pilot. The E-300 SkyRanger light aircraft had been modified into a drone equipped with a 100kg payload, precision bombing capabilities and, crucially, an onboard remote control system. Its target? Unknown. But it had been flown remotely by Ukrainian forces, who have been developing such drones to strike targets inside Russia as a way of making up for their lack of long-range missiles. Early incarnations of Ukrainian long-range drones may have failed – but last month Kyiv had greater success. This time, its target was clear. In the dark of night in late January, the 14th regiment of the Ukrainian army launched a major attack on Russia's Novozybkov oil pumping station, near the border with Belarus. Credit: X/ @EuromaidanPress Pictures of the attack showed a FAB-250 high-explosive bomb mounted on a similar light aircraft, alongside a 120mm mortar shell, showing the scale of the weapons. Militarnyi, a Ukrainian military analyst group, said the aircraft was equipped with one large bomb and two smaller munitions 'visually resembling artillery shells'. The remotely controlled light aircraft was designed to return to Ukraine after delivering its payload. It is unclear whether it managed to do so, but the impact of the attack did not go unnoticed. 'Local residents reported loud explosions in the sky and the destruction of several aerial targets,' reported Shot, a Russian Telegram channel. A large blaze was also visible from the villages of Mamai and Zamiskoye, according to local sources, while satellite imagery confirmed a fire near the Druzhba pipeline station. According to Defense Express, a media and consulting company, Russia is aware of Ukraine's capability to deploy such bombs but is unable to defend its energy sites as most of its resources are in Moscow or on the front line. Maxim Starchak, a strategic weapons expert, told The Telegraph: 'There are simply not enough people and equipment in Russia. 'The industry is not yet able to provide the necessary means of protection. Moreover, there are so many drones, they are diverse, it is not entirely clear to the Russian defence in which areas what protection to use.' The development reflects Ukraine's growing attempts to bring the war 'home' to Russia in a conflict that has increasingly become defined by drones on an unprecedented scale. Thousands of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are used to track enemy forces, guide artillery and bomb targets in what has now become routine for both sides. Kyiv had set a target for itself to produce one million drones in 2024. By October of last year, Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, said the country could produce four million. The use of the tactic is also about hitting Moscow where it hurts: oil depots, the Kremlin's cash cow. Earlier in January, Ukraine claimed to have used a drone to strike one of Russia's largest oil refineries, located hundreds of miles across the border, sparking a large fire. The attack on the Taneco refinery in the city of Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan, was the second time the facility had been hit by Ukrainian forces within a year. Just three days later, on Jan 14, Ukraine used six British Storm Shadow missiles and US-made Atacms tactical ballistic missiles in what Kyiv described as its 'largest attack' on Russian military facilities. At the same time, Kyiv's forces launched at least 146 drones into Russia, targeting locations almost 700 miles deep into the country. Emily Ferris, a Russia analyst at Rusi, a defence think tank, said: 'These attacks demonstrate Ukraine's geographical reach across Russia and psychologically, it brings the war home.' Add in the fact that Russia has still not been able to take back all of Kursk, after it was seized by Kyiv's forces last August, then Ukraine hopes to bring the war home even more. 'It makes Russians question: can the government keep me safe?' added Ms Ferris. One of the primary factors motivating Ukrainian attacks is to hurt the Russian economy, which has shown signs of buckling under the pressure of Vladimir Putin's war machine. In October, Russia's central bank raised interest rates to a 21-year high of 21 per cent, sparking anger among the president's oligarchs. Russian businesses have also been crippled by extensive labour shortages as fighting-age men are conscripted into the army with the promise of high pay or the threat of forced service. Major attacks on oil refineries, which turn crude oil into products like gasoline and diesel, add to this pressure, especially given their economic value. In August last year, Russia earned around $500 million (£404 million) per day from crude exports and oil exports, according to the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air. However, the attacks have so far failed to significantly disrupt its economy – and for good reason. The Novozybkov oil pumping station, which was attacked by Ukraine at the end of the month, is connected to the Druzhba pipeline. It is highly valuable to Russia as it provides a critical route for exporting large volumes of crude oil across Europe, connecting Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Germany. 'It's not that Ukraine can't [have a major impact], it's just that Russia is part of the global hydrocarbon economy. It is still plugged in in a lot of ways, European countries are still receiving flows from Russia,' Ms Ferris told The Telegraph. 'If you massively disrupt that, then it has implications for oil prices across the world. And the Ukrainians are very cautious of not doing that. They have a threshold for what they can really do without having global implications.' There are also implications for Russia's military. For example, the Taneco refinery, which can refine 16 million tons of oil every year, plays a key role in supplying fuel to the Russian army. There has been a double attack against an oil refinery in Ryazan, about 300 miles from the Ukrainian border. As one of the four largest refineries in Russia, it produces fuel for jets, tanks, aircraft and ships. The bombing forced the refinery to temporarily suspend operations. 'Combat work on … important objects involved in securing the army of Russian aggressors will continue,' said the Ukrainian military. Perhaps more important, though, is the timing. Kyiv claimed two attacks on Russian oil deposits in November and four in December. In January, that figure rose to 13 – and the total for February already stands at four. With peace talks ramping up, Ukraine may feel it only has a small window to hit Russia where it hurts before being forced to the negotiating table by Donald Trump, the US president. 'If you're seeing a barrage of drone attacks, it might be because the Ukrainians are trying to get that in before they have to come to the negotiating table and are on the back foot, eventually,' said Ms Ferris. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
