Six Russian crewmembers, three Russian servicemen and 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed on Wednesday after two Ukrainian SAMs launched from Kharkov region struck the Russian Il-76 strategic airlifter they were traveling in in Belgorod region. Sputnik asked a pair of geopolitics and military observers about the attack’s broader implications.
According to Soviet and Russian Army veteran and military expert Ret. Col. Andrei Koshkin, the new additions to Russia’s combat arsenal will include UAVs such as Lastochka (Swallow) strike drones, FPV drone Upyr and upgraded FPV drone Rusak, as well as the Zhuravel (Crane) UAV complex and “various kamikaze copters.”
Drones have conquered the battlefield in the Ukraine conflict, becoming an almost indispensable modern warfare technology. Why has Russia managed to adapt to this revolutionary shift so quickly?
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Kiev is on a blame spree as money flows from the West have dwindled. Now Ukrainian military contractors are accusing Russia of sabotaging their efforts to buy arms abroad but that the only reason foreign states could be reluctant to sell weapons to Ukraine?