File:2024.02.19soldierWithDrone1024x744.jpg

Ukrainian soldier with drone.

Image by atlanticcouncil ^[1]

Original picture: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/2024-02-19T000000Z_244888544_MT1ABCPR887233025_RTRMADP_3_ABACA-PRESS-scaled-e1708464672831-1024x744.jpg

Original description

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/outgunned-ukraine-bets-on-drones-as-russian-invasion-enters-third-year/

February 20, 2024 Outgunned Ukraine bets on drones as Russian invasion enters third year By Mykola Bielieskov

In early February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the creation of a separate branch of the Ukrainian Armed Forces devoted to drones. Ukraine’s new Unmanned Systems Force is a military innovation reflecting the growing prominence of drones in modern warfare. Zelenskyy’s decision also underlines the importance of UAVs to the Ukrainian war effort as Kyiv seeks to maintain a technological edge over Russia while grappling with mounting shortages in artillery shells and other more traditional weapons systems.

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is not the first conflict to feature unmanned aerial vehicles in significant numbers. Reconnaissance and strike UAVs were employed extensively in eastern Ukraine following the onset of Russian aggression in 2014, and in a range of other combat zones over the past decade including Syria, Libya, and the Second Karabakh War in the southern Caucasus. Nevertheless, the unprecedented numbers of UAVs used by both sides over the past two years in Ukraine has led some to call Russia’s invasion the world’s first drone war.

The ubiquity of drones in Ukraine is leading to dramatic changes on the battlefield. Fleets of UAVs have revolutionized surveillance, making it extremely difficult for commanders to benefit from the element of surprise. This helps to explain why both the Russian and Ukrainian armies are finding it increasingly difficult to mount successful offensives against defensive positions. In addition to dramatically enhancing battlefield visibility, drones also serve as precision strike weapons capable of replicating many of the functions performed by artillery and missiles at only a fraction of the price.

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Keywords

«[[]]», «Mystic weakness», «Russian invasion into Ukraine», «[[]]»,