Latest news with #NATO-supplied
Russia Today
2 days ago
- Russia Today
VIDEO shows Russian soldiers taking down Ukrainian drone with scissors
Russian soldiers have purportedly disabled a Ukrainian fiber-optic drone using scissors, according to a video posted on the Telegram channel Voennyi Osvedomitel (Military Informant) on Saturday. Unlike traditional FPV drones, these models do not rely on radio signals, making them resistant to electronic warfare, with both sides of the conflict deploying them. As the drone passed in an unspecified location in the forest, the troops identified its trailing fiber-optic cable, sprinted forward, and severed it with medical scissors. Moments later, the drone crashed and detonated, footage shows. Russia was first to mass-deploy these 'invisible thread' drones in mid-2024. The 'Prince Vandal of Novgorod' drone was developed by the Ushkuynik Scientific and Production Center in less than a year. The fiber-optic FPV drone has caused substantial damage to NATO-supplied equipment to Ukraine, with claims of up to $300 million in destroyed hardware, according to the head of Novgorod Region, Andrey Nikitin. The Times reported in May that Russia is beating Ukraine in 'the drone race' when it comes to both the production of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and their use on the battlefield. It pointed to the fiber optic drone types connected directly to their operators through a gossamer thin fiber optic thread that makes them difficult to detect or intercept. Russian UAVs are 'altering the physical make-up of the front line, the tactics of the war and the psychology of the soldiers fighting it,' the outlet said. Despite their anti-jamming advantages, fiber-optic drones have a restricted operational range determined by the length of the cable and potential visibility of it under certain environmental conditions.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Russia Downs Ukrainian Drones, UK-Supplied Missiles In Fresh Counter Assault, Claims Moscow
Russia says it has intercepted another major Ukrainian drone attack, downing multiple UAVs overnight across Crimea, Belgorod, Kursk, and the Sea of Azov. The Russian MoD also claims to have destroyed NATO-supplied weapons, including Storm Shadow and JDAM missiles. This comes days after a major Ukrainian drone assault, marking a sharp escalation. Meanwhile, Russian shelling in eastern Ukraine reportedly killed five people, as Ukraine accuses Moscow of targeting civilians. The total number of downed drones now exceeds 300, according to Russian sources.#russia #ukraine #putin #zelensky #stormshadow
NBC News
25-02-2025
- Business
- NBC News
China's Xi affirms ‘no limits' partnership with Putin in call on Ukraine war anniversary
BEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping affirmed his 'no limits' partnership in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, Chinese state media reported, on the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The leaders held the talks as President Donald Trump has pushed for a quick deal to end the Ukraine war, raising the prospect that Washington could draw a wedge between Xi and Putin to focus on competing with the world's second-largest economy. The call appeared aimed at dispelling any such prospects — the two leaders underscored the durability and the 'long-term' nature of their alliance, with its own internal dynamics that would not be impacted by any 'third party.' 'China-Russia relations have strong internal driving force and unique strategic value, and are not aimed at, nor are they influenced by, any third party,' said Xi, according to the official readout published by Chinese state media. 'The development strategies and foreign policies of China and Russia are long-term,' said Xi, adding that the two countries 'are good neighbors that cannot be moved apart.' Russia, waging war against NATO-supplied Ukrainian forces, and China, under pressure from a concerted U.S. effort to counter its growing military and economic strength, increasingly have found common geopolitical cause. Xi has told Putin in recent years that the two have the chance to drive 'changes the world has not seen in a century,' which many analysts see as an attempt to challenge a U.S.-led global order. China and Russia declared a 'no limits' strategic partnership days before Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022. Xi has met Putin over 40 times in the past decade and Putin in recent months described China as an ally. 'The Russians will see what carrots Trump may dangle to create distance between Moscow and Beijing, but they are confident that they can keep both pragmatic, beneficial ties with China and engage the United States if Trump is really willing to play ball,' said Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. Trump has alarmed Washington's European allies by leaving them and Ukraine out of talks with Russia held last week in Saudi Arabia and blaming Ukraine for Russia's 2022 invasion. Putin also informed Xi 'about the recent Russian-American contacts,' according to a Kremlin statement. Xi said that China was 'pleased to see the positive efforts made by Russia and all parties concerned to defuse the crisis,' noting China's initiatives such as the creation of a group of nations called 'friends of peace.' These efforts have focused on portraying China as a neutral peacemaker, but critics say they lack substance because the West accuses China of supporting Russia's war effort through supplies of dual-use goods and massive purchases of Russian oil and gas. China has denied it supports Russia's military-industrial base. China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, said at the Munich Security Conference last week that China would not stop buying Russia's gas because doing so would make China unsafe. Instead, Xi has directed bureaucrats to study Trump's policies and to respond to his initial tariffs and threats, as China's struggling economy with high youth unemployment is poorly placed to weather another trade war with Washington. This was the second call both leaders have held this year, after they discussed how to build ties with Trump in January. Gabuev said that the 'fact that both sides did it on the third anniversary of the war just tells you how robust this partnership has become.' The two sides also discussed preparations for the commemoration of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. Earlier this month, Xi accepted Russia's invitation to attend the event in May.
