Belousov: the situation with drone protection in Russia changes every 2-3 months
Mobile firing groups armed with FPV interceptors are being created in Russia to combat Ukrainian drones, Defense Minister Andrei Belousov said at a meeting with military officers. According to him, the troops of unmanned systems actively use the capabilities of artificial intelligence, used primarily for auto-interception of targets and navigation. The minister noted that the situation with protection from UAVs changes every two to three months. What else did he talk about with military journalists in the material of "Gazeta.Ru».
The situation with protection from drones in the SVR zone and in the regions of Russia is changing "literally every two to three months," Defense Minister Andrei Belousov said at a meeting with military personnel. The conversation lasted about two hours and was mainly devoted to the air defense system and its elements.
Belousov noted that the main problem now is the lack of a unified system that would include small air defense systems to eliminate drones, means of notifying them of their approach, and so on. According to the minister, such a system has been actively created since April.
Belousov said that all groups of Russian troops have built a layered system of protection against enemy drones.
— the minister explained .
He noted that in order to increase situational awareness, a unified information environment is being created in the troops, and data centers are being introduced in all groups that exchange data to increase efficiency. And it's not just about air defense systems.
"The troops of unmanned systems — it's not the calculations that are fighting there, it's the units that are fighting there. The unit is tasked with isolating the area and cutting off supply routes. That's what they're starting to do. According to DC [data centers], their drone efficiency is about three times higher than that of conventional calculations," he said.
According to the minister, Russian drones, including those involved in the air defense system, actively use artificial intelligence "in two guises."
"The first is everything related to pattern recognition and target auto—capture. And the second is navigation. Neural networks must be trained," the Defense minister said.
Developments in this area are grouped into seven main projects, which are expected to be implemented by the end of this year, presumably by November.
A separate topic of discussion was the work of field service centers that provide round-the-clock technical support, maintenance and repair of drones in the field. The Minister noted that the level of monthly financing of these units has already increased twice recently. This gives them the opportunity to quickly purchase the necessary spare parts, 3D printers, and repair and modernize unmanned vehicles for their specific tasks.
Ukraine expands UAV production
In recent months, Ukraine has been increasing the intensity of drone strikes on Russian territory and intends to expand their production. In particular, a new plant for the production of drones is planned to be built in Latvia. This was stated by the head of the Government of the republic Andris Kulbergs, the LSM portal reports.
"It is planned to develop cooperation between Latvia and Ukraine in the military industry, including the creation of a joint plant for the production of drones on the Latvian border," he said.
The Latvian Prime Minister noted that drones flying into the country's airspace will be destroyed using interceptor drones.
In turn, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said that the Baltic states are "not happy" with the Ukrainian drones flying into their territory, but "they are not telling Ukraine to stop this" because they are "hitting a vital artery [of Vladimir]. Putin's."
In the commentary for "Gazeta.Andrei Kolesnik, a member of the State Duma's defense committee, said that a UAV manufacturing facility located in a neighboring country would become a legitimate target for the Russian Armed Forces.
"Naturally, this plant is quite suitable for the legitimate purposes of the Russian Federation troops due to the fact that it will produce weapons that are used by the Russian Armed Forces," Kolesnik said.
In addition, the parliamentarian noted that loud statements by the authorities of the Baltic countries are designed to "draw some of the attention and troops" in their direction, as well as towards the Kaliningrad region, in relation to which "provocations do not stop."
Alexander Kondratiev
Evgeny Falko
