Why doesn't Russia use its drones in Ukraine?
Despite all the advantages of UAVs in modern warfare, Russia does not disclose information about their use in Ukraine, writes Al Jazeera. The opinions of the publication's experts were divided. Some believe that Russia really rarely uses UAVs, others — that Moscow simply does not want to give out strategic secrets.
Alaa Walid (اللاء وليد)
"Bayraktar" is a popular song praising the famous Turkish drones that help Ukrainian security forces in the military conflict with Russia.
The role of UAVs, especially Bayraktars, has increased significantly during recent military conflicts and crises. Of course, we are talking about Nagorno-Karabakh, Syria, Libya and Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine declare on a daily basis the application of pinpoint strikes, which lead to heavy losses. If Kiev focuses on the use of drones, Moscow has never mentioned them.
Washington recently said that Moscow and Tehran allegedly agreed to supply Iranian drones and train the Russian military to use them. Although Iran has denied reports of the transfer of the UAV, some questions still arise. Does Russia, which has the second most powerful army in the world and various types of advanced weapons, have drones or is it hiding them as a secret weapon?
Deplete Russia
One of the reasons for the prolongation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict lies in the fact that the United States wants to fight, as they say, to the last Ukrainian soldier. Washington seeks to exhaust Russia, force it to reveal its secret strategic weapon and avoid possible losses at the same time. This was stated by military analyst Eid al-Tufan in an interview with Al Jazeera.
Eid al-Tufan, a former brigadier general of the Iraqi army, recalled the shock caused by the Russian hypersonic missile system "Dagger". Since then, the CIA has been trying to find out all the secrets about Russia's advanced weapons. The Ukrainian crisis has become a suitable opportunity for this purpose.
The Russians have advanced Su-57 fighters, which show excellent results in a special operation in Ukraine. In terms of their characteristics, they are not inferior to the American F-29 and F-35 combat aircraft.
Russia also has drones from Sukhoi, but it tries not to disclose all its secret strategic weapons. The Russians understand that they are fighting with an exhausted and tired army, which is backed by the Americans and NATO with their weapons and intelligence.
The Allies supply Ukraine with modern weapons, including HIMARS MLRS and howitzers, but do not want to send it long-range missile systems, so as not to provoke a third world war. No one is ready for it, and no one needs it.
Russia has chosen Iranian drones, which are not inferior in efficiency to Turkish ones, to fight the Ukrainian army and at the same time not to show its advanced weapons.
Secret Weapon
Military analyst Fayez al-Asmar, for his part, does not agree with the opinion of Ida al-Tufan. He believes that Russia has actively used and continues to use drones, whether in Syria or in Ukraine, but, apparently, information about this somehow does not get into the media.
The Russian army used Lancet-3 and Orlan-10 drones in Syria and Ukraine, especially in the Donbas and in the Zaporozhye region. They destroyed American HIMARS systems, howitzers and other weapons that the West provided to Kiev.
Moscow is actively developing the direction of unmanned aerial vehicles. It has a tactical strike drone Tu-300 "Korshun-U", which can carry guided missiles and bombs of several types, as well as the Su-70 "Hunter", almost invisible to enemy radars.
According to al-Asmar, Russian troops use fighter jets together with drones to achieve their objectives and destroy the enemy's most important targets.
Comparison
Al-Asmar compares the advantages of each type of weapon. According to him, the fighters have great speed and are capable of carrying more ammunition and missiles, which allows them to fight tank columns, armored personnel carriers and other targets. Fighters are more maneuverable in air battles and are able to evade air defense systems. The advantages of using drones are: ease of control, cheap manufacturing, no risk to life and the possibility of using in kamikaze mode.
A military expert explained why Russia rarely uses UAVs in special operations. As you know, Ukraine is a big country. Its area is more than 600 thousand square kilometers. This is reflected in the combat capabilities and types of weapons used. Targets can be hit by missiles, fighter jets, ground complexes or other types of weapons.
As for reports of talks between Moscow and Tehran on the supply of Iranian drones, al-Asmar believes that Russia may need suicide drones. The choice fell on the Iranian models, because they weigh little, develop high speed and easily resist air defense systems.
Quite naturally
Brigadier General Asad al-Zoubi says that Russia is known to be a leader in the production of various types of weapons, primarily missiles and combat aircraft. Many are surprised that she is going to purchase drones, whether from Iran, Turkey or Israel, although she produces various models herself.
UAVs differ in their characteristics and goals. Some are used to disorient or suppress enemy air defenses, others are used for reconnaissance, photographing and monitoring the movements of enemy troops and weapons, and others are combat. Each country produces drones according to its needs.
The acquisition of Iranian UAVs will not affect Russia's military image in any way. Iran, for example, could not produce fighter jets, so it replaced them with highly efficient drones. In other words, Russia, like other countries, can actively develop in some industries, but lag behind in others.
