Russia urgently strengthening air cover for moscow and Krasnodar Krai - Syrskyi

Russia is urgently strengthening air defense coverage over moscow and the Krasnodar Krai to counter Ukrainian strike drones. Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi has reported this on Facebook, according to the Ukrainian News agency.

"The enemy is urgently deploying, outside of approved plans, an additional 4 regiments, 24 battalions, and 162 batteries to counter our strike drones. It is strengthening the layered air defense cover of Moscow and the Krasnodar Krai. In fact, the Russians are scaling up their UAV forces, copying Ukrainian solutions — technical, tactical, and organizational. The same applies to the use of electronic warfare (EW) assets in border regions," he said.

According to Syrskyi, russia plans to produce 7.3 million FPV drones and 7.8 million combat units for various types of UAVs by 2026; the enemy is increasing the supply of strike drones with turbojet engines to its forces, and the Armed Forces of Ukraine are observing this, analyzing it, and factoring it into their planning.

The Commander-in-Chief noted that despite all the challenges, the Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to maintain the initiative and set the pace; Ukraine’s advantage in FPV drones has been growing since December, and for the fifth consecutive month, the unmanned systems units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine alone have neutralized more occupiers than russia has been able to mobilize into its army.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy previously stated that the relocation of air defense systems from russian regions to moscow ahead of May 9 opens up additional opportunities for Ukrainian “long-range sanctions.”