For most of the twentieth century, airpower was one of the most costly components of military strength. Fighter jets, strategic bombers, and advanced missile systems necessitated massive financial investments, highly skilled personnel, and sophisticated logistical support networks. Only great military forces had the ability to sustain these capabilities.
More than 1,000 drones a high proportion of which are likely to be Shahed 136s have targeted Iran's Gulf neighbours since the US and Israel first attacked Tehran on Saturday morning. On Monday afternoon, the UAE said it had been attacked by 689 drones and had downed 645 meaning 44 drones, a little over 6% of the total, got through.
There was a certain amount of awareness, there was kind of a frustration with the missions that we were being called on to carry out, the people flying the missions, they knew that we were kind of wasting drones. For militaries that have the luxury of time and maybe the luxury of money, I think moving into sort of something a little bit more sophisticated makes more sense.
Facing an existential crisis, the Ukrainians had to develop a way to counter hostile forces cheaply yet with mass. That meant figuring out how to turn inexpensive drones into weaponry, a step that quickly and fundamentally changed how the war was being fought. Now, drones carry out 80% of all battlefield hits and are responsible for most combat casualties.
Fierce fighting continues on the front line between Russian and Ukrainian forces despite the frigid winter temperatures, said Ukraine's Commander in Chief Oleksandr Syrskii, who stated the front line now stretches about 1,200km (750 miles) in length along eastern and southern parts of Ukraine. Increasing technological improvements in drone warfare on both sides of the conflict mean that the so-called kill zone where troops are in greatest danger on the front line is now up to 20km (12 miles) deep, Syrskii told reporters.
It is just before dawn, the December temperature a couple of degrees above freezing; time for troop rotations to start across Ukraine's 750 mile front. A crew of four from Da Vinci Wolves battalion are loading up into an M113 armoured personnel carrier at a secret location ready to be driven out to a safe point. From there they will walk to their position and remain on the front for 10 or 12 days.
The war in Ukraine has made one thing unmistakably clear: drones are no longer a support weapon on the battlefield. They are central to how modern wars will be fought. From reconnaissance and targeting to direct strikes, low-cost, fast-moving drones with powerful payloads are causing massive destruction and racking up kills against traditional armed forces. And that mastery of drone warfare is allowing a smaller country like Ukraine to hold its own on the front lines
Billions of dollars are at stake in this battle. The Pentagon is preparing to spend $9.4 billion on aerial combat drones in fiscal year 2026 as part of its larger $13.4 billion investment in autonomous systems. Furthermore, the Air Force is seeking $789.4 million for research and development of autonomous "loyal wingmen" drones that can fly and fight alongside crewed combat aircraft or carry out missions alone. The Department of Defense also aims to invest $3.1 billion in counter-drone technology.
Russia has been adding rear-view cameras to some of its Shahed-type drones, allowing operators to see Ukrainian interceptors approaching from behind and take evasive action, a senior defense official told Business Insider. Lt. Col. Yurii Myronenko, Ukraine's deputy minister of defense for innovation, said Russia is "constantly testing" new deep-strike weapons, including modifying its Shahed-type drones and fielding new models. "Some Shaheds have already been equipped with rear-view cameras to detect and respond to our interceptors," said Myronenko, a former drone unit commander.
Lt. Col. Yurii Myronenko, Ukraine's deputy minister of defense for innovation, said that drones are responsible for strikes on roughly 90% of all targets struck on the battlefield and have made large-scale armor assaults extremely challenging. But drones alone are not enough to hold the line and stop the enemy from breaking through, he said. Dense fog and other inclement weather provide ideal cover for Russian infiltration tactics.
Zelensky's visit is part of a brief tour of his western allies that saw him seal an energy deal with Greece on Sunday and will include a visit to Spain on Tuesday. The Ukrainian leader has said that "a major deal with France" will be announced soon, but it was not known if that would be finalised in his talks with President Emmanuel Macron. The French presidency said Macron would "put French excellence in the armaments industry field at the service of the defence of Ukraine".
Russian drone attacks on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, early on Sunday killed at least three people and wounded 29 others, according to Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko. The wounded included seven children, Klymenko said. Russian attacks also killed a 63-year-old man in the southeastern Zaporizhia region on Sunday and one person in the eastern Kharkiv region on Saturday night, the Kyiv Independent reported on Sunday, citing local officials.
In a report published this week, the commission said Russian forces, operating under a centralised command, had systematically used drones to intentionally target civilians and civilian objects and cause harm and destruction. The report was compiled by the UN's independent international commission of inquiry on Ukraine, an independent body that reports back to the UN. The latest report looked at three regions of Ukraine in particular Kherson, Mykolaiv and Dnipropetrovsk which are
From Kursk, North Korean units are using drones to conduct aerial reconnaissance missions over the neighboring Sumy region in Ukraine, identifying troop positions and supporting Russian follow-on strikes against identified targets, Kyiv said. Ukraine has "intercepted communications between North Korean drone operators and personnel of the Russian army," Kyiv shared in a statement published to the Telegram messaging app. It said that North Korean drone operators "adjusted the fire of multiple launch rocket systems against Ukrainian positions."
Every day I see cars that ran out of fuel and were left on the curb, Ayder, a resident of Simferopol, Crimea's administrative capital, told Al Jazeera. His car runs on natural gas, which is more available these days. There are long lines and fistfights at gas stations after a limit of 20 litres (5.3 gallons) per car was introduced, he said, withholding his last name out of fear of punishment for talking to foreign media.
My first strike was January 28th, 2013, at 6:49 in the morning. It ended up being a cave in the middle of nowhere, and there was a handful of people there that they wanted us to take out.
We also mourn the Ukrainian woman, Iryna Zarutska. She was brutally killed with a knife here in America, the very country where she was seeking refuge from Russia's war. And almost every day, when we open the news, we see headlines about violent attacks happening all around the world. Most of it is done with weapons. People are already used to it.
