AFU have extended their strike range: Estonia and Ukraine discussed drone incidents, - Kiviselg
Colonel Ants Kiviselg, head of the Estonian Defense Forces’ Intelligence Center, stated that the Ukrainian Defense Forces’ ability to strike targets at long range has significantly improved over the past week and a half.
According to Censor.NET, ERR reports on this.
According to him, Ukrainian weapons are now capable of striking targets even near Estonia’s borders, which has drawn additional attention to drone flight paths and security risks in the region.
Estonia discussed drone incidents with Kyiv
In Tallinn, officials discussed with the Ukrainian side instances where drones entered Estonian airspace. Kiviselg emphasized that such incidents are not the result of Ukrainians using Estonian airspace for attacks.
In his assessment, such incidents are most often linked to drones entering from Russian territory, as well as to the influence of Russian air defenses, which can alter their flight paths.
The Estonian side has recommended that Ukraine plan the routes of its strike assets in such a way that they do not cross the country’s airspace.
At the same time, officials in Tallinn acknowledge that it is impossible to completely rule out such risks due to the complexity of combat conditions and the operations of Russian air defense systems.
The effectiveness of strikes against Russian infrastructure
Kiviselg also noted the effectiveness of Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil infrastructure. According to him, some ports, including Ust-Luga and Primorsk, were forced to partially suspend terminal operations.
In Ust-Luga, as noted, damage to or the disabling of some of the berths led to a reduction in export capacity.
According to the Estonian intelligence center, the effectiveness of the strikes is ensured by large-scale drone production in Ukraine. In particular, one company manufactures over 200 drones daily.
A combined tactic is also being employed: decoy drones are first used to wear down Russian air defenses, after which combat drones deliver the strikes.
