EDF: Russia plans to attack Ukraine's civilian infrastructure this winter
Russia has launched fewer missile attacks against Ukraine in recent weeks instead preferring to focus its intelligence activities against critical infrastructure objects as it plans to attack them this winter, said Lt. Col. Tanel Lelov. Russia's use of drones has also improved.
At times, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has turned into drone warfare, "Ukraina stuudio" said on Sunday. Russia now boasts that it can produce thousands each month.
Lt. Col. Tanel Lelov, head of the air defense department of the Estonian Division Headquarters, said small drones are commonly used as they are easy to acquire.
Lelov said Russia has learned to use drones better but has had little success.
"There has certainly been progress in the use of drones on the tactical side in both directions. The Russian side has certainly started to make better use of drones on the sections of the front where the attacks are taking place, whether for observation, target identification, or even for fire control of indirect fire units. That's where they've really gotten better," he told the show.
He added that small drones are a cost-effective means of wearing down an opponent's anti-aircraft defenses. Sometimes they are so small that they do not show up on older radar systems.
Russia has also launched fewer missile attacks in recent weeks, he said. This is because the Russian forces are preparing to attack Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.
"There have not been a lot of missile strikes, and at the moment, it's more of a reconnaissance of Ukraine's critical infrastructures, with a view to possibly attacking them at the beginning of the winter. The Ukrainians /..../ are fortifying these critical objects, they are defending them with different anti-aircraft weapons according to the threat assessment given to these objects. And, hopefully, these attempts by Russian troops to damage or destroy this infrastructure will fail," Lelov said.
Ukraine has so far managed to use ATACMS missiles to hit the land-based firing positions of Russian ballistic missiles, he said, but ATACMS cannot be used against missiles fired from aircraft.
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Editor: Merili Nael, Helen Wright
Source: Ukraina stuudio, interview by presenter Reimo Sildvee