Units of the Russian army have received orders to intensify drone strikes against civilian infrastructure and vehicles in frontline and border areas, according to the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine.
“Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence reports: units of the Russian occupation army have received orders to intensify drone strikes against civilian infrastructure and road transport in frontline and border areas. The command has ordered an increase in attacks on gas stations, trucks, buses, and passenger vehicles,” the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine said in a Telegram statement on Friday.
The report states that the Centre for Advanced Unmanned Systems Rubicon and external drone operators of Russian army units have been assigned to carry out these orders. For target detection and strikes, Russia plans to use remotely guided drones, including Molniya-1, Molniya-2, Geran-seeker, Gerbera-seeker, Lancet, V2U, and other similar unmanned systems.
“Low levels of crew training are already leading to incidents in which, as part of the terror campaign against Ukraine, Russian forces mistakenly strike their own side. For example, operators of the 1427th Motor Rifle Regiment of the Russian Armed Forces, after losing orientation, directed a Molniya-2 drone at a civilian UAZ ‘Bukhanka’ vehicle near the settlement of Glushkovo in Russia’s Kursk region. The drone did not hit the target and detonated approximately 10 metres from the vehicle,” the Defence Intelligence reported.
At the same time, the Defence Intelligence noted that similar attacks against Russia’s own civilian population in border regions are often staged by Russian special services in order to be used by Kremlin propaganda in campaigns aimed at demonising and discrediting Ukraine. Another illustrative case occurred in the Zaporizhzhia direction, where Russian drone operators carried out a “friendly fire” incident, mistakenly striking a pickup truck with Russian troops.
“In any case, the order by Russian leaders to intensify drone terror in frontline regions poses a real threat to Ukraine’s civilian population. The Defence Intelligence of Ukraine calls on citizens to remain vigilant and respond to air raid alerts,” the agency emphasized.
