Russia’s cheap drone tactics aim to terrorize Ukrainian civilians, expert reveals

Russia will not stop its nightly drone attacks intended to exert pressure on the Ukrainian population, Ukrainian aviation expert Anatolii Khrapchynskyi told Radio NV.

In recent months, Russia has intensified its drone attacks on Ukraine, utilizing various types of drones, including Iranian-made Shaheds, to strike critical infrastructure and urban areas. This strategy aims to disrupt Ukraine’s power grid and instill fear among the civilian population, resulting in casualties and damage across multiple regions.

Khrapchynskyi believes that Russian ruler Vladimir Putin has no intention of reducing the pace of airstrikes on Ukrainian territory, especially with the use of inexpensive drones.

“They have invented a low-cost way to attack Ukraine, allowing them to continue terrorizing the country,” Khrapchynskyi said.

He also mentioned that Russia has begun to use drones of an unidentified type to target Ukraine.

“It’s a monoplane with a 3D-printed ball inside, wrapped in foil to imitate a larger object on radar systems. It burdens Ukraine’s air defenses, creating numerous targets that must be detected and neutralized, either with electronic warfare or direct elimination,” Khrapchynskyi explained.

He noted that most of these nightly attacks are intended to exert psychological pressure on Ukrainians, disrupting their sleep and causing fatigue. Additionally, Russia is planning psychological operations concerning potential agreements between Putin and Trump regarding territorial concessions to Moscow.

“It’s clear that some concessions to Russia could be considered by the new US administration, but it must be understood that Ukraine is now building up its own weapons production capabilities,” Khrapchynskyi added.

The expert also suggested that by next year, Ukraine could respond to Russia with long-range missiles.

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