Der Spiegel: Ukraine Has Doubled The Destruction Of Russian Air Defense In Six Months
- 14.05.2026, 21:12
Drones play a key role.
The Ukrainian military is actively hunting Russian air defense systems. Thanks to new Ukrainian developments, the Defense Forces in April destroyed twice as many Russian air defense systems and radars as in October 2025.
The number of precision strikes on rear targets has also increased. In March, Ukraine attacked Russian territory with about 7,000 drones. About it writes German Der Spiegel.
The authors of the publication note that Russian reserves are gradually being depleted. This allows Ukraine to carry out more and more strikes deep behind Russian lines.
The FP-2, Hornet and Bulava drones play a key role. At the last kilometers they operate autonomously: they scan the terrain according to maps and find the target on their own. Their radius of action is up to 200 kilometers behind the front line.
Their main targets are Tor, Buk and S-300 systems. It is known that from January to April Ukraine carried out 600 drone strikes in the occupied territories.
"Therefore, Moscow is now facing a strategic choice: to defend troops at the front or to cover its own rear and industrial infrastructure," the publication says.
The journalists also report that Ukraine is increasingly attacking oil refineries and military facilities deep inside Russia. According to media calculations, in April and May alone, dozens of strikes on oil and industrial infrastructure hundreds and even thousands of kilometers away from the front.
In addition, the publication notes that Ukrainian drone attacks are changing the mood inside Russia as well. In the regions of the Russian Federation there are more and more frequent air alerts and attacks, then the Russians feel unprotected.
The publication assumes that Ukraine will continue to systematically destroy the air defense and industry of Russia. But it will be difficult for Moscow to compensate for the losses, as air defense systems are scarce in the world, and over time the gaps in Russia's defense shield may increase.
We recall that on the night of May 13, a fire broke out at the Astrakhan gas processing plant (GPP) in the Russian Federation, the network reported. The governor confirmed the drone attack.
Also on the night of May 13, drones attacked Russia's Krasnodar region en masse. There were a series of explosions near Anapa and in the Temryutsk district, after which fires went up. After the attack in Taman, a fire broke out near the local seaport.
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