Last year, Russia significantly increased its use of one-way attack UAVs against Ukraine. Their mass employment in combination with missiles complicates the work of Ukraine’s air defense and increases the effectiveness of Russian strikes.
This was reported by the UK Ministry of Defence on the social media platform X.
According to the report, in 2025 Russia launched around 55,000 one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicles (kamikaze drones) against targets in Ukraine, which is approximately five times the number of such drones launched in 2024. Analysts believe this indicates an increase in Russia’s capacity and production of this type of UAV.
In December 2025, Russia launched approximately 5,100 kamikaze drones against Ukrainian targets. This is fewer than in November, when Russia launched about 5,400 UAVs, which is almost certainly attributable to poor weather conditions.
“In November and December 2025, Russia also launched approximately 90 long-range missiles each month. The use of kamikaze drones complicates the air situation for Ukraine’s air defense and increases the survivability of Russian long-range missiles,” the report states.
It is also noted that Russia has concentrated its air strikes on Ukraine’s critically important energy infrastructure, significantly worsening living conditions for the civilian population during the winter months. In response to the consequences of these strikes, on January 14, 2026, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared a state of emergency in the energy sector across the entire country.
