Stand behind Ukrainian independent journalism when it’s needed most. Help us reach 20,000 members.

Skip to content
Edit post

UK Defense Ministry: Russia deploys domestically-produced drones based on Shaheds

by Martin Fornusek August 16, 2023 9:59 AM 2 min read
Remains of a Shahed 136 kamikaze drone at an exhibition showing remains of missiles and drones that Russia used to attack Kyiv on May 12, 2023, in Kyiv. (Photo credit: Oleksii Samsonov /Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Russia has almost certainly started to deploy domestically-produced drones based on Iranian Shahed kamikaze drone designs, the U.K. Defense Ministry said in its latest intelligence report on Aug. 16.

Domestic production will enable Russia to establish a more stable supply of kamikaze drones to be used in airstrikes against Ukraine, the report noted.

Although Moscow likely hopes to become fully self-sufficient in manufacturing the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), it is currently dependent on components and complete weapons shipped from Iran, mostly via the Caspian Sea, the ministry said.

As the intelligence report pointed out, Shahed drones have so far achieved "variable" results as Ukrainian forces proved capable of intercepting the majority of the incoming UAVs.

Join our community
Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Support us

Russian forces have been utilizing Iranian-made drones to strike targets across Ukraine. In February, the Wall Street Journal reported that Russia plans to construct a factory to produce drones of Iranian design on Russian territory.

The claim was later backed by U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, who clarified in June that the plant in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Tatarstan could become operational in early 2024.

However, researchers from the Conflict Armament Research (CAR) said on Aug. 13 that Russia has already begun making copies of Shahed drones commonly marked as Geran-2. The CAR came to the conclusion upon inspecting the wreckage of two UAVs shot down in southeastern Ukraine.

CNN: Ukraine takes credit for striking Crimean Bridge with sea drone in July
Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) claimed responsibility for the July 17 attack on the Crimean Bridge and said they used an experimental sea drone in the operation, CNN reported on Aug. 15.

Independent journalism needs a community —
not a paywall.

We’re working hard to show the world the truth of Russia’s brutal war — and we’re keeping it free for everyone, because reliable information should be available to all.

Our goal: reach 20,000 members to prove independent journalism can survive without paywalls, billionaires, or compromise. Will you help us do it?

Can we reach 20,000 members?

News Feed

8:44 PM

Trump claims 'progress' on ending Russia-Ukraine war.

"We are trying to settle Russia-Ukraine," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters. "I spoke with President Putin for two hours the day before yesterday. I think we made a lot of progress. But that's a bloodbath."
5:09 PM

Historian Timothy Ash on the 'new West' after 'Trump shock.'

With the fading U.S. global leadership under Donald Trump, Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine, and growing populism at home, Europe faces a stark choice: step up or fall into irrelevance. Speaking with the Kyiv Independent on May 16, British historian Timothy Garton Ash paints a picture of a West in transition.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
Explaining Ukraine with Kate Tsurkan
* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.