Ukrainian forces carried out a massive drone barrage targeting military assets in Russia. As part of its larger campaign to thwart Moscow’s advances, Kyiv launched more than 100 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) along with American-made Storm Shadow missiles and Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS). Following the attack, Russia’s Defense Ministry warned that “These actions of the Kyiv regime, supported by Western curators, will not go unanswered.” While Ukraine may be facing some setbacks on its home turf, the military’s ability to strike targets nearly 700 miles into Russia is significant. According to the Ukrainian military’s General Staff, a range of assets in southwestern Russia were targeted in the barrage, including military production facilities and an oil storage base. Although a newer tool in modern warfare, drone use has become popularized in the Russian-Ukraine conflict and continues to play a pivotal role in both nations’ defensive and offensive operations.

How drone warfare has monopolized the Russian-Ukraine conflict

Since February 2022, both Russian and Ukrainian forces have relied heavily on UAVs to achieve their respective war aims. While Moscow has depended on Iran and China to maintain its drone arsenal, Ukraine uses a combination of domestically-made aerial weapons and Western-delivered counterparts. This fall, Reuters first reported that Moscow had established a weapons program in China to construct long-range attack drones for use in Ukraine. Beijing has denied this claim as it is likely cautious to publicize its aid for Moscow in light of the potential international sanctions it could be slapped with. Tehran has also provided a litany of lethal UAVs to Moscow since the war began nearly three years ago. The depth of Iranian-Russian collaboration on this front was detailed by U.S. officials last year when images depicting the Iranian-designed Shahed-131 killer drone in Ukraine were revealed.

An overview of Kyiv’s Western-made UAVs

Ukraine recently received the green light from the Biden administration to deploy its stockpile of long-range U.S.-made weapons inside Russia. While the White House had previously refused to authorize this ability in the past, the decision to provide ATACMS to Kyiv gives the country nearly double the striking distance of the vast majority of the rest of its weapons arsenal. These surface-to-surface missiles travel at high altitudes before descending rapidly, making them extremely difficult to detect. With a range of up to 190 miles, even the most advanced air defense systems possessed by Moscow are incapable of interception. The Storm Shadow missiles deployed this week by Kyiv in its drone barrage in Russia are similarly lethal. These Anglo-French cruise missiles are launched from airframes and are considered to be an ideal weapon for penetrating ammunition stores and hardened bunkers.

As the final days of the Biden administration play out, both Ukrainian and Russian officials are eyeing the incoming Trump administration and the potential consequences this change in presidency will provoke. President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to end the war swiftly when in office. The exact details surrounding the new president’s plan are in question.

About the Author: Maya Carlin

Maya Carlin, National Security Writer with The National Interest, is an analyst with the Center for Security Policy and a former Anna Sobol Levy Fellow at IDC Herzliya in Israel. She has by-lines in many publications, including The National Interest, Jerusalem Post, and Times of Israel. You can follow her on Twitter: @MayaCarlin. Carlin has over 1,000 articles published over the last several years on various defense issues.

Image: Shutterstock.