Latest news with #NATO
See - Sada Elbalad
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- See - Sada Elbalad
Security Council to hold session on Israeli escalation in Syria
Basant Ahmed Syrian media reported, citing a diplomatic source, that the UN Security Council will hold a session, Thursday, regarding the Israeli escalation in Syria. A diplomatic source said the Security Council received a request from Syria to hold an emergency session regarding the Israeli escalation. Syrian media, citing a diplomatic source, confirmed that the UN Security Council received a request from Syria to hold an emergency session regarding the Israeli escalation. Thousands of Syrians demonstrated on Wednesday in Damascus, Aleppo, Hama, and Latakia to condemn the Israeli aggression against the country and reject foreign interference in its affairs. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News Israeli-Linked Hadassah Clinic in Moscow Treats Wounded Iranian IRGC Fighters News China Launches Largest Ever Aircraft Carrier Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Videos & Features Tragedy Overshadows MC Alger Championship Celebration: One Fan Dead, 11 Injured After Stadium Fall Lifestyle Get to Know 2025 Eid Al Adha Prayer Times in Egypt Arts & Culture South Korean Actress Kang Seo-ha Dies at 31 after Cancer Battle News "Tensions Escalate: Iran Probes Allegations of Indian Tech Collaboration with Israeli Intelligence" News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks Arts & Culture Hawass Foundation Launches 1st Course to Teach Ancient Egyptian Language Videos & Features Video: Trending Lifestyle TikToker Valeria Márquez Shot Dead during Live Stream
Time of India
an hour ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Cheap and deadly: How Ukraine's drones are blunting Russian advantages in troops, tanks, and artillery
Drones , drones, drones. Only drones. A lot of drones." A weary Ukrainian platoon commander speaks to the transformed nature of modern warfare as he's medically evacuated from the front lines. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category Kamikaze drones . Surveillance drones . Bomber drones. Drones that kill other drones. These machines swarm the skies in vast numbers. They're cheap, they're deadly and they're among the main reasons Ukraine believes it can hold out against advancing Russian forces this year and even beyond, according to a dozen Ukrainian commanders, officials and arms manufacturers involved in Kyiv's defence. Ukrainian soldiers describe the drone-infested corridor covering about 10 km either side of the line of contact as the "kill zone" because remotely piloted unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) deployed by both sides can swiftly spot and neutralise targets. Live Events The war 's evolution into the most drone-intensive conflict ever seen has eaten away at Russia 's ability to exploit its traditional advantages in troop numbers, artillery and tanks, according to two Ukrainian battlefield commanders interviewed. Any large vehicle operating near the front is now an obvious target, meaning Russian forces can no longer make the kind of rapid advances they did in 2022 with columns of armoured vehicles, according to the commanders as well as the founder of OCHI, a system which centralizes video feeds from over 15,000 Ukrainian military drone crews on the front lines. "The enemy sees you completely," OCHI's Oleksandr Dmitriev added. "No matter where you go or what you are driving." Russia has consequently adapted its tactics, the Ukrainian battlefield commanders said; its forces now typically attack in small groups of five or six - on foot or on motorbikes or quad bikes - in an attempt expose Ukrainian positions by drawing their fire and then launching drone strikes at them, they added. Russia's defence ministry didn't respond to a request for comment on this article. Despite the changes in warfare, Russian forces retain the ascendancy and are making slow but steady advances in the east and north of Ukraine. Russia has also caught up in UAV technology after falling behind early in the war, according to military analysts, and like its enemy is churning out drones domestically at a rate of millions a year. Meanwhile, European leaders are trying to parse President Donald Trump's announcement this week that America would supply arms to Ukraine via NATO, with Europe picking up the bill. Many details remain unclear, including the types and quantity of weapons, how quickly they would be sent and precisely how they would be paid for, U.S. and European officials said this week. The White House didn't respond to queries on the supply plan. Spokeswoman Anna Kelly said the war had gone on too long and Trump wanted to end the killing, and so is selling U.S. arms to NATO for Ukraine and threatening hefty sanctions on Russia. The people interviewed for this article, who were speaking before Trump's weapons announcement, said they believed Ukraine could fight on and resist Russia even if no more U.S. aid was forthcoming, though they didn't give precise timelines. Many cited the primacy of drones as having levelled the field to some degree and made Ukraine more self-sufficient, and also pointed to growing military supplies from European allies. "We can hold out for months," said Oleksandr Kamyshin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's arms expert and strategic adviser, when asked about what would happen if U.S. weapons supplies ceased. "In 2023 or 2024, it would have been a lot worse - we would be talking about days or weeks." Polish military analyst Konrad Muzyka, who has made numerous visits to the front lines, said Ukraine's focus was to sap the strength of Russian attacks, adding that Kyiv didn't currently have the capability to launch offensives of its own. He said Ukraine would likely struggle in a long war of attrition due to its manpower shortages and Russia's superior resources. Although drones have changed the battlefield, he cautioned against overstating their ability to make up for an absence of artillery and mortars. "To deliver the amount of damage that an artillery shell does to a target, you would need to launch tens of drones," he added. "Drones can fill in the gaps to some extent and give you some breathing space, but they are not a substitute for artillery." DESTRUCTION RAINS FROM ABOVE Drones are demons, at least for those in the kill zone that straddles the 1,000 km line of contact. Reconnaissance UAVs from both sides - resembling shrunken airplanes, made of plastic or styrofoam and equipped with sophisticated cameras - can spot enemies from several kilometres away. They hover over the front lines, relaying back what they see in real time. They find targets for the fleets of bomber drones - often hexacopters the size of coffee tables that can drop precision grenades with 3D-printed tailfins - as well as kamikaze drones, some with RPG warheads strapped on to pierce armour, which can fly into soldiers, tanks and weapons systems. The platoon commander being evacuated from the front, a 35-year-old called Ivan who goes by the call sign "Atom", said soldiers on both sides now saw UAVs as the biggest threat to their lives, replacing shells, mines and enemy fighters which were the primary perils earlier in the war. A medic with him on the bus, 34-year-old Olga Kozum, concurred: Most of the battlefield injuries she and her colleagues treat are caused by UAVs, she said. According to internal Ukrainian estimates seen by Reuters, drones accounted for 69% of strikes on Russian troops and 75% of strikes on vehicles and equipment in 2024. About 18% of strikes on Russian infantry and 15% of strikes on vehicles and equipment were conducted with artillery, and even less with mortars, according to the same estimates. The wartime UAV arms race has spawned many innovations; both sides are deploying short-range, fibre-optic drones that cannot be electronically jammed, as well as "interceptors" that hunt down and destroy enemy reconnaissance and attack drones. Kyiv's planned production this year of 30,000 long-range UAVs, designed to attack targets deep inside Russia such as arms depots and energy facilities, gives Ukraine an increased offensive threat, according to Vadym Sukharevskyi, commander of the country's drone forces until early June. The average cost of a long-range strike drone ranges from $50,000 to $300,000, about 10 times less than a missile of similar range, although a drone's warhead is smaller, Sukharevskyi said in an interview while still in the post. "This is our asymmetrical answer," he said, adding that Ukraine started developing such drones "precisely because we lack missiles". Kamyshin, President Zelenskiy's adviser, added: "You can't win a big war if you are only defending." Long-range drone strikes are "one of the main cards Ukraine can play against Russia right now". WANTED: U.S. PATRIOTS AND INTEL Ukraine's military-industrial base is expanding rapidly, and now accounts for around 40% of the weapons and equipment used, including drones, according to Zelenskiy, who on Wednesday set out a target to reach 50% in six months. Kyiv has also sought to diversify its supplies and its European allies are providing growing amounts of munitions, potentially making the country more resilient to geopolitical shocks. The Kiel Institute, a German-based economic research group, estimated in a report last month that Europe had surpassed the U.S. in total military aid provided over the course of the war for the first time since June 2022, reaching 72 billion euros compared with 65 billion euros from Washington. The institute said aid flows to Ukraine shifted significantly in March and April as no new U.S. aid was allocated and European countries upped support. While the U.S. has been - and remains - the largest sole supplier of artillery shells to Ukraine during the war, Europe is expanding capacity and has purchased hundreds of thousands of munitions from within and outside the continent. Of around 420,000 artillery shells received by Ukraine from the start of this year until around mid-May, only 160,000 were from the United States, according to a European security source who requested anonymity to discuss confidential matters. Kamyshin said Ukraine made around 2.4 million of its own shells in 2024, although these were mostly for mortars, which are shorter range. Ukraine is nonetheless particularly reliant on the U.S. in the areas of air defences and intelligence sharing, military analysts said. Kyiv particularly covets U.S. Patriot air defence systems, capable of intercepting ballistic missiles that Russia is firing with increasing frequency. As of April this year, Ukraine had seven fully operational systems, well short of the 25 that Zelenskiy has requested, according to analysts at Ukrainian publication Defence Express. Long-range drone and missile attacks often rely on U.S. satellite intelligence. European countries can only go a small way to replacing were the United States to stop sharing it, the European Union Institute for Security Studies said.
The Herald Scotland
2 hours ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Trump traps liberals in their own lies about his presidency
None of that has happened, and I don't know whether to be disappointed or elated. But I must ask: What happened? And why have things gone so right when they were supposed to be so wrong? Progressives were wrong about the Trump economy Progressives have persistently forecast imminent economic doom since Trump was reelected in November. In April, the Associated Press reported: "President Donald Trump has panicked global financial markets, raised the risk of a recession and broken the political and economic alliances that made much of the world stable for business after World War II." That same month, Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, declared that "Donald Trump is ruining the economy on purpose." And The American Prospect, in an article headlined, "The Great Trump Crash?," predicted that tariffs would "mean an instant, near-total halt of trade between China and the U.S." None of those dire predictions proved to be true. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq recently reached record highs. Employers added more jobs than expected last month. The inflation rate ticked higher in June, but remains far below the 40-year high that Americans suffered under during the Biden administration. Opinion: Liberals call Trump a clown. But he's winning where it matters most. Progressives' scary predictions about international affairs also have proven to be false. Trump was supposed to be the green light Putin needed to pummel Ukraine into submission. Trump's America first stance also was supposed to embolden China and splinter NATO. In reality, Trump has been a peacemaker, pushing for meaningful ceasefires in conflicts from Gaza to Pakistan, Ukraine to Iran. Trump's efforts in the Middle East alone are worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize. Trump set back Iran's development of nuclear weapons, then forged a ceasefire between Iran and Israel. Diplomatic efforts to broker a lasting peace in Gaza also continue. Opinion: Trump deserves Nobel Peace Prize. He's achieved more than those who've won before. If there is to be a World War III, it doesn't appear imminent. Once again, progressives' claims about Trump were nothing but fearmongering. Democracy remains strong with Trump in the White House Probably the biggest lie the left has told about Trump is that his election would be an "extinction-level threat" for democracy. Six months into Trump's second term, I'm happy to report that democracy is still alive and well. Just look at recent headlines: New York Democrats exercised their right to vote for a socialist to run America's largest city. Millions of Americans marched in "No Kings" protests to criticize the president. Other protestors have taken to the streets to demonstrate against enforcement of our nation's immigration laws. Opinion alerts: Get columns from your favorite columnists + expert analysis on top issues, delivered straight to your device through the USA TODAY app. Don't have the app? Download it for free from your app store. Despite liberals' oft-repeated fears, the evidence overwhelmingly points to a healthy democracy, where Americans vote for the candidates of their choice and raise their voices to call out politicians and policies they don't like. Trump isn't a king; he's a duly elected president chosen by a healthy plurality of voters. His election was democracy in action. It's not just that progressives' worst fears turned out to be far from reality. The left tried to gaslight Americans into believing they'd regret voting for Trump. The fearmongering on the left was wrong, then and now. And I won't let liberals forget it. Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four kids. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.
The Star
2 hours ago
- Politics
- The Star
Enter the kill zone: Ukraine's drone-infested front slows Russian advance
KYIV/BERLIN (Reuters) -"Drones, drones, drones. Only drones. A lot of drones." A weary Ukrainian platoon commander speaks to the transformed nature of modern warfare as he's medically evacuated from the front lines. Kamikaze drones. Surveillance drones. Bomber drones. Drones that kill other drones. These machines swarm the skies in vast numbers. They're cheap, they're deadly and they're among the main reasons Ukraine believes it can hold out against advancing Russian forces this year and even beyond, according to a dozen Ukrainian commanders, officials and arms manufacturers involved in Kyiv's defence. Ukrainian soldiers describe the drone-infested corridor covering about 10 km either side of the line of contact as the "kill zone" because remotely piloted unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) deployed by both sides can swiftly spot and neutralise targets. The war's evolution into the most drone-intensive conflict ever seen has eaten away at Russia's ability to exploit its traditional advantages in troop numbers, artillery and tanks, according to two Ukrainian battlefield commanders interviewed. Any large vehicle operating near the front is now an obvious target, meaning Russian forces can no longer make the kind of rapid advances they did in 2022 with columns of armoured vehicles, according to the commanders as well as the founder of OCHI, a system which centralizes video feeds from over 15,000 Ukrainian military drone crews on the front lines. "The enemy sees you completely," OCHI's Oleksandr Dmitriev added. "No matter where you go or what you are driving." Russia has consequently adapted its tactics, the Ukrainian battlefield commanders said; its forces now typically attack in small groups of five or six - on foot or on motorbikes or quad bikes - in an attempt expose Ukrainian positions by drawing their fire and then launching drone strikes at them, they added. Russia's defence ministry didn't respond to a request for comment on this article. Despite the changes in warfare, Russian forces retain the ascendancy and are making slow but steady advances in the east and north of Ukraine. Russia has also caught up in UAV technology after falling behind early in the war, according to military analysts, and like its enemy is churning out drones domestically at a rate of millions a year. Meanwhile, European leaders are trying to parse President Donald Trump's announcement this week that America would supply arms to Ukraine via NATO, with Europe picking up the bill. Many details remain unclear, including the types and quantity of weapons, how quickly they would be sent and precisely how they would be paid for, U.S. and European officials said this week. The White House didn't respond to queries on the supply plan. Spokeswoman Anna Kelly said the war had gone on too long and Trump wanted to end the killing, and so is selling U.S. arms to NATO for Ukraine and threatening hefty sanctions on Russia. The people interviewed for this article, who were speaking before Trump's weapons announcement, said they believed Ukraine could fight on and resist Russia even if no more U.S. aid was forthcoming, though they didn't give precise timelines. Many cited the primacy of drones as having levelled the field to some degree and made Ukraine more self-sufficient, and also pointed to growing military supplies from European allies. "We can hold out for months," said Oleksandr Kamyshin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's arms expert and strategic adviser, when asked about what would happen if U.S. weapons supplies ceased. "In 2023 or 2024, it would have been a lot worse – we would be talking about days or weeks." Polish military analyst Konrad Muzyka, who has made numerous visits to the front lines, said Ukraine's focus was to sap the strength of Russian attacks, adding that Kyiv didn't currently have the capability to launch offensives of its own. He said Ukraine would likely struggle in a long war of attrition due to its manpower shortages and Russia's superior resources. Although drones have changed the battlefield, he cautioned against overstating their ability to make up for an absence of artillery and mortars. "To deliver the amount of damage that an artillery shell does to a target, you would need to launch tens of drones," he added. "Drones can fill in the gaps to some extent and give you some breathing space, but they are not a substitute for artillery." DESTRUCTION RAINS FROM ABOVE Drones are demons, at least for those in the kill zone that straddles the 1,000 km line of contact. Reconnaissance UAVs from both sides - resembling shrunken airplanes, made of plastic or styrofoam and equipped with sophisticated cameras - can spot enemies from several kilometres away. They hover over the front lines, relaying back what they see in real time. They find targets for the fleets of bomber drones - often hexacopters the size of coffee tables that can drop precision grenades with 3D-printed tailfins - as well as kamikaze drones, some with RPG warheads strapped on to pierce armour, which can fly into soldiers, tanks and weapons systems. The platoon commander being evacuated from the front, a 35-year-old called Ivan who goes by the call sign "Atom", said soldiers on both sides now saw UAVs as the biggest threat to their lives, replacing shells, mines and enemy fighters which were the primary perils earlier in the war. A medic with him on the bus, 34-year-old Olga Kozum, concurred: Most of the battlefield injuries she and her colleagues treat are caused by UAVs, she said. According to internal Ukrainian estimates seen by Reuters, drones accounted for 69% of strikes on Russian troops and 75% of strikes on vehicles and equipment in 2024. About 18% of strikes on Russian infantry and 15% of strikes on vehicles and equipment were conducted with artillery, and even less with mortars, according to the same estimates. The wartime UAV arms race has spawned many innovations; both sides are deploying short-range, fibre-optic drones that cannot be electronically jammed, as well as "interceptors" that hunt down and destroy enemy reconnaissance and attack drones. Kyiv's planned production this year of 30,000 long-range UAVs, designed to attack targets deep inside Russia such as arms depots and energy facilities, gives Ukraine an increased offensive threat, according to Vadym Sukharevskyi, commander of the country's drone forces until early June. The average cost of a long-range strike drone ranges from $50,000 to $300,000, about 10 times less than a missile of similar range, although a drone's warhead is smaller, Sukharevskyi said in an interview while still in the post. "This is our asymmetrical answer," he said, adding that Ukraine started developing such drones "precisely because we lack missiles". Kamyshin, President Zelenskiy's adviser, added: "You can't win a big war if you are only defending." Long-range drone strikes are "one of the main cards Ukraine can play against Russia right now". WANTED: U.S. PATRIOTS AND INTEL Ukraine's military-industrial base is expanding rapidly, and now accounts for around 40% of the weapons and equipment used, including drones, according to Zelenskiy, who on Wednesday set out a target to reach 50% in six months. Kyiv has also sought to diversify its supplies and its European allies are providing growing amounts of munitions, potentially making the country more resilient to geopolitical shocks. The Kiel Institute, a German-based economic research group, estimated in a report last month that Europe had surpassed the U.S. in total military aid provided over the course of the war for the first time since June 2022, reaching 72 billion euros compared with 65 billion euros from Washington. The institute said aid flows to Ukraine shifted significantly in March and April as no new U.S. aid was allocated and European countries upped support. While the U.S. has been - and remains - the largest sole supplier of artillery shells to Ukraine during the war, Europe is expanding capacity and has purchased hundreds of thousands of munitions from within and outside the continent. Of around 420,000 artillery shells received by Ukraine from the start of this year until around mid-May, only 160,000 were from the United States, according to a European security source who requested anonymity to discuss confidential matters. Kamyshin said Ukraine made around 2.4 million of its own shells in 2024, although these were mostly for mortars, which are shorter range. Ukraine is nonetheless particularly reliant on the U.S. in the areas of air defences and intelligence sharing, military analysts said. Kyiv particularly covets U.S. Patriot air defence systems, capable of intercepting ballistic missiles that Russia is firing with increasing frequency. As of April this year, Ukraine had seven fully operational systems, well short of the 25 that Zelenskiy has requested, according to analysts at Ukrainian publication Defence Express. Long-range drone and missile attacks often rely on U.S. satellite intelligence. European countries can only go a small way to replacing were the United States to stop sharing it, the European Union Institute for Security Studies said. (Reporting by Max Hunder in Kyiv, Sabine Siebold in Berlin and Manuel Ausloos in Dnipropetrovsk, eastern Ukraine; Additional reporting by Olena Harmash in Kyiv, Mike Collett-White in London and Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington; Editing by Mike Collett-White and Pravin Char)
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Enter the kill zone: Ukraine's drone-infested front slows Russian advance
KYIV/BERLIN - "Drones, drones, drones. Only drones. A lot of drones." A weary Ukrainian platoon commander speaks to the transformed nature of modern warfare as he's medically evacuated from the front lines. Kamikaze drones. Surveillance drones. Bomber drones. Drones that kill other drones. These machines swarm the skies in vast numbers. They're cheap, they're deadly and they're among the main reasons Ukraine believes it can hold out against advancing Russian forces this year and even beyond, according to a dozen Ukrainian commanders, officials and arms manufacturers involved in Kyiv's defence. Ukrainian soldiers describe the drone-infested corridor covering about 10 km either side of the line of contact as the "kill zone" because remotely piloted unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) deployed by both sides can swiftly spot and neutralise targets. The war's evolution into the most drone-intensive conflict ever seen has eaten away at Russia's ability to exploit its traditional advantages in troop numbers, artillery and tanks, according to two Ukrainian battlefield commanders interviewed. Any large vehicle operating near the front is now an obvious target, meaning Russian forces can no longer make the kind of rapid advances they did in 2022 with columns of armoured vehicles, according to the commanders as well as the founder of OCHI, a system which centralizes video feeds from over 15,000 Ukrainian military drone crews on the front lines. "The enemy sees you completely," OCHI's Oleksandr Dmitriev added. "No matter where you go or what you are driving." Russia has consequently adapted its tactics, the Ukrainian battlefield commanders said; its forces now typically attack in small groups of five or six - on foot or on motorbikes or quad bikes - in an attempt expose Ukrainian positions by drawing their fire and then launching drone strikes at them, they added. Russia's defence ministry didn't respond to a request for comment on this article. Despite the changes in warfare, Russian forces retain the ascendancy and are making slow but steady advances in the east and north of Ukraine. Russia has also caught up in UAV technology after falling behind early in the war, according to military analysts, and like its enemy is churning out drones domestically at a rate of millions a year. Meanwhile, European leaders are trying to parse President Donald Trump's announcement this week that America would supply arms to Ukraine via NATO, with Europe picking up the bill. Many details remain unclear, including the types and quantity of weapons, how quickly they would be sent and precisely how they would be paid for, U.S. and European officials said this week. The White House didn't respond to queries on the supply plan. Spokeswoman Anna Kelly said the war had gone on too long and Trump wanted to end the killing, and so is selling U.S. arms to NATO for Ukraine and threatening hefty sanctions on Russia. The people interviewed for this article, who were speaking before Trump's weapons announcement, said they believed Ukraine could fight on and resist Russia even if no more U.S. aid was forthcoming, though they didn't give precise timelines. Many cited the primacy of drones as having levelled the field to some degree and made Ukraine more self-sufficient, and also pointed to growing military supplies from European allies. "We can hold out for months," said Oleksandr Kamyshin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's arms expert and strategic adviser, when asked about what would happen if U.S. weapons supplies ceased. "In 2023 or 2024, it would have been a lot worse – we would be talking about days or weeks." Polish military analyst Konrad Muzyka, who has made numerous visits to the front lines, said Ukraine's focus was to sap the strength of Russian attacks, adding that Kyiv didn't currently have the capability to launch offensives of its own. He said Ukraine would likely struggle in a long war of attrition due to its manpower shortages and Russia's superior resources. Although drones have changed the battlefield, he cautioned against overstating their ability to make up for an absence of artillery and mortars. "To deliver the amount of damage that an artillery shell does to a target, you would need to launch tens of drones," he added. "Drones can fill in the gaps to some extent and give you some breathing space, but they are not a substitute for artillery." DESTRUCTION RAINS FROM ABOVE Drones are demons, at least for those in the kill zone that straddles the 1,000 km line of contact. Reconnaissance UAVs from both sides - resembling shrunken airplanes, made of plastic or styrofoam and equipped with sophisticated cameras - can spot enemies from several kilometres away. They hover over the front lines, relaying back what they see in real time. They find targets for the fleets of bomber drones - often hexacopters the size of coffee tables that can drop precision grenades with 3D-printed tailfins - as well as kamikaze drones, some with RPG warheads strapped on to pierce armour, which can fly into soldiers, tanks and weapons systems. The platoon commander being evacuated from the front, a 35-year-old called Ivan who goes by the call sign "Atom", said soldiers on both sides now saw UAVs as the biggest threat to their lives, replacing shells, mines and enemy fighters which were the primary perils earlier in the war. A medic with him on the bus, 34-year-old Olga Kozum, concurred: Most of the battlefield injuries she and her colleagues treat are caused by UAVs, she said. According to internal Ukrainian estimates seen by Reuters, drones accounted for 69% of strikes on Russian troops and 75% of strikes on vehicles and equipment in 2024. About 18% of strikes on Russian infantry and 15% of strikes on vehicles and equipment were conducted with artillery, and even less with mortars, according to the same estimates. The wartime UAV arms race has spawned many innovations; both sides are deploying short-range, fibre-optic drones that cannot be electronically jammed, as well as "interceptors" that hunt down and destroy enemy reconnaissance and attack drones. Kyiv's planned production this year of 30,000 long-range UAVs, designed to attack targets deep inside Russia such as arms depots and energy facilities, gives Ukraine an increased offensive threat, according to Vadym Sukharevskyi, commander of the country's drone forces until early June. The average cost of a long-range strike drone ranges from $50,000 to $300,000, about 10 times less than a missile of similar range, although a drone's warhead is smaller, Sukharevskyi said in an interview while still in the post. "This is our asymmetrical answer," he said, adding that Ukraine started developing such drones "precisely because we lack missiles". Kamyshin, President Zelenskiy's adviser, added: "You can't win a big war if you are only defending." Long-range drone strikes are "one of the main cards Ukraine can play against Russia right now". WANTED: U.S. PATRIOTS AND INTEL Ukraine's military-industrial base is expanding rapidly, and now accounts for around 40% of the weapons and equipment used, including drones, according to Zelenskiy, who on Wednesday set out a target to reach 50% in six months. Kyiv has also sought to diversify its supplies and its European allies are providing growing amounts of munitions, potentially making the country more resilient to geopolitical shocks. The Kiel Institute, a German-based economic research group, estimated in a report last month that Europe had surpassed the U.S. in total military aid provided over the course of the war for the first time since June 2022, reaching 72 billion euros compared with 65 billion euros from Washington. The institute said aid flows to Ukraine shifted significantly in March and April as no new U.S. aid was allocated and European countries upped support. While the U.S. has been - and remains - the largest sole supplier of artillery shells to Ukraine during the war, Europe is expanding capacity and has purchased hundreds of thousands of munitions from within and outside the continent. Of around 420,000 artillery shells received by Ukraine from the start of this year until around mid-May, only 160,000 were from the United States, according to a European security source who requested anonymity to discuss confidential matters. Kamyshin said Ukraine made around 2.4 million of its own shells in 2024, although these were mostly for mortars, which are shorter range. Ukraine is nonetheless particularly reliant on the U.S. in the areas of air defences and intelligence sharing, military analysts said. Kyiv particularly covets U.S. Patriot air defence systems, capable of intercepting ballistic missiles that Russia is firing with increasing frequency. As of April this year, Ukraine had seven fully operational systems, well short of the 25 that Zelenskiy has requested, according to analysts at Ukrainian publication Defence Express. Long-range drone and missile attacks often rely on U.S. satellite intelligence. European countries can only go a small way to replacing were the United States to stop sharing it, the European Union Institute for Security Studies said. REUTERS
