Key developments on July 5: * F-16s will challenge Russia's aerial dominance over Black Sea, Ukraine's Navy chief says * Latvia to send over 2,500 drones to Ukraine in July, ministry says * Orban says Kyiv and Moscow's positions on peace 'are very far apart' * Stoltenberg hopes Ukraine will join NATO within
Riga will send more than 2,500 different types of combat drones to Ukraine this month, worth 4 million euros ($4.3 million), the Latvian Defense Ministry announced on July 5.
Russian air defense reportedly shot 10 drones over Rostov Oblast, causing a large fire, Governor Vasily Golubev reported on July 5.
CHERNIHIV, Ukraine – At Ukraine’s 50th Regiment's repair and restoration facility, officers, soldiers, and volunteers watched as a self-loading container truck lowered onto the ground a black shipping container with an installed repair workshop inside. The Tvii Krok (Your Step) charity, which designed this mobile repair complex, known as Workshop
Chinese companies are allegedly developing attack drones similar to the Iranian-produced Shahed-type drone to aid Russia in its war against Ukraine, Bloomberg reported on July 2, citing European officials familiar with the matter.
Ukraine employs long-range drones to strike deep into Russian territory, targeting military infrastructure such as airfields and logistics, as well as oil refineries and depots.
Moscow's defense ministry on June 30 claimed to have destroyed 36 Ukrainian drones overnight that targeted several regions in the southwest of Russia.
The Russian Defense Ministry said U.S. drones were being used to conduct reconnaissance and find targets for "high-precision weapons supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine by Western states.
HUR initially reported only two boats had been hit during the attack in Vuzka Bay, which lies at the Chornomorske town on Crimea's western coast.
According to Russia's Defense Ministry, Russian air defense shot down overnight on June 20 six drones over the Republic of Adygea, three over Bryansk Oblast, three over Krasnodar Krai, one over Rostov Oblast, one over Belgorod Oblast, and one over Oryol Oblast.
According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's investigative project Schemes, the depot in the Russian city of Azov is run by Azovproduct which can store up to 30,000 tons of oil products.
The Stalker 5.0 drone can reportedly accelerate up to 75 km/h and has a cruise speed of 55 km/h. It has an estimated price tag of around 60,000 euros ($64,000).
Latvia has already dispatched the first batch of drones to Ukraine and is preparing a second one, Latvian Defense Minister Andris Spruds said in an interview with ArmyInform published on June 17.
Ukraine's 68th Jaeger Brigade released a video on June 14 purporting to show its forces taking out an entire Russian tank company during fighting in the Pokrovsk direction in the east of the country.
Just a month after the U.S. Congress approved the much-awaited aid package for Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kyiv with a clear message: Washington supports the embattled country despite political bickering and the ongoing election campaign. Blinken also announced a special military-industrial complex development and
Ukraine officially presented its Unmanned Systems Forces on June 11, four months after President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a decree ordering the creation of a separate branch of the armed forces tasked with improving drone operations. The announcement comes a day after Defense Minister Rustem Umerov appointed Colonel Vadym Sukharevskyi, the
Vadym Sukharevskyi, deputy commander-in-chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces, was appointed the commander of the newly-created Unmanned Systems Forces on June 10, the General Staff reported.
Nearly 100% of drones Ukraine’s Armed Forces use in Russia’s war are developed domestically, Deputy Defense Minister Dmytro Klimenkov said on June 1.
Editor’s note: In accordance with the security protocols of the Ukrainian military, soldiers featured in this story are identified by first names and callsigns only. KHARKIV OBLAST – In battles fought under a sky swarming with enemy drones, even the most minimal movement, even the quickest dash from one house
Air defense is a "major part of the plan to defend eastern Europe from invasion," a NATO diplomat told the Financial Times. "And right now, we don't have that."
Russia aims to reach the production level of 6,000 Shahed attack drones a year at the Alabuga facility, while the factory was already ahead of its production schedule in April.
The Latvian government will invest around 20 million euros ($22 million) in the drone coalition for Ukraine this year, the public broadcaster LSM reported on May 27, citing the country's defense minister, Andris Spruds.
Russian air defense intercepted a drone over the town of Balashikha near Moscow the evening of May 27, Moscow Oblast Governor Andrey Vorobyov claimed.
Russian forces launched a large-scale aerial attack against Ukraine the night of May 26, causing explosions in multiple regions and injuring at least three people.
"This is a completely new thing —a drone border from Norway to Poland, the purpose of which would be to protect our border with the help of drones and other technologies," said Lithuanian Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite.
A surge of domestic drone companies in Ukraine has outpaced what the government budget can support, leading many companies to increasingly seek international partnerships or face consolidation. Drones have become a transformative part of Ukraine’s military strategy. The country’s ability to mass produce these cheap and effective weapons
Ukraine's military intelligence agency confirmed to the Kyiv Independent that it was behind a drone attack targeting Russian military facilities in Russia's Tatarstan Republic on May 23.
Naval drones used by the SBU have hit several Russian warships but until now have been kamikaze drones that explode on impact or in the near vicinity of a target.
Ukraine intercepted all 24 Shahed-type attack drones over Mykolaiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Sumy, and Odesa oblasts, Air Force commander Mykola Oleshchuk said.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in conjunction with the country's new Unmanned Systems Forces, launched a drone attack on Russia's Kushchevskaya military airbase and Slavyansk oil refinery plant overnight, Ukrainska Pravda reported on May 19.
Ukrainian drones attacked several military facilities in Russia and in occupied Crimea overnight of May 17, Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing unnamed sources in special services. The operation was reportedly carried out by Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
Ukrainian forces attacked multiple settlements in Belgorod Oblast on May 16-17, damaging a gas station and killing two people, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov claimed.
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