Best UAV units – eliminators of occupiers, January ranking
The stream is dedicated to the drone warfare. A report on our top UAV strike units based on their performance in January.
I am often asked whether public pressure makes a difference—whether my appearances on air, discussions, and the public raising issues in Ukraine have any real impact. I want to say that one of the outcomes of what I have discussed on air, along with the ideas expressed by me and other people interested in UAV development, was the creation of a unified ranking and a centralized system for recording the combat effectiveness of all strike drone units. This system allows for a clear measurement—not of everything, of course, as no system is perfect—but of the key indicators of combat performance. I am very grateful to Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation and Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who, on the orders of Supreme Commander-in-Chief Volodymyr Zelenskyy—and here, credit must be given where it is due—developed, implemented, and organized this ranking system. A standardized accounting system was established and launched recently, providing a clear, data-driven analysis of drone operations. And today’s stream will focus on the ranking of the best UAV units for January.
I will say some things that have not been aired before. What does the rating give us? The rating also takes into account enemy drone strikes. It gives us an understanding of the scale of the enemy's losses, in terms of people, equipment, and different types of equipment. It gives us an understanding of how much of our own resources we spend on this and allows us to make adequate defence planning on this basis.
Why am I talking to you about this and trying to generate public awareness, to create a public opinion, wave? The main point is not just to praise specific units—after all, we already have plenty of information about these heroes online, and they themselves showcase the results of their work. The real issue is defense planning. In my view, thanks to drones and their continued development, Ukraine currently holds an advantage and has the potential to win the war. If we win the drone war, it means we can win the war as a whole. However, the problem is this: if funds are not allocated for drones, then instead of securing victory in a war where the enemy holds superiority in everything—artillery, aviation, ammunition, missiles, all types of weaponry, and manpower—we will be unable to counterbalance their advantage in all other aspects of the conflict. Our key objective is to ensure that our best drone units receive proper funding for 2025. Unfortunately, as of mid-February 2025, most UAV units in Ukraine are still not covered by centralized, planned financing. That is why I am speaking today about the critical role of UAV units in this war—the drone forces established within various structures of the Defense Forces. If we do not highlight this issue, there will be no way to bring it to the attention of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and our Western partners, who provide financial assistance to sustain our fight against Russian occupiers. I see no other way to draw their attention to this matter.
By mid-February, there seems to be money for everything—for targeted aid payments of a thousand hryvnias, for funding nuclear reactors. It’s completely unclear. This is a matter of national survival, the survival of the state, of the country. In these circumstances, everything must be directed to the front. Because otherwise—who? What country will be left to use these reactors later? Isn’t it obvious that there must be priorities?
To ensure that our superiority in the air, particularly in drones, is not only maintained but strengthened—so that we can truly destroy the Russian army. Why is this possible? Why can drones, when integrated with all other branches of the armed forces, be a decisive factor in winning the war? What makes drones a game-changer on the battlefield? Now, we will examine the drone war through the eyes of a Russian soldier. This is a well-known post that has sparked significant reactions in both the Russian- and Ukrainian-speaking parts of the internet.
Svyatoslav Golikov, a Russian soldier who runs the channel Philologist in Ambush, writes extensively about the war in Ukraine. His posts are quite popular in the Russian online space. He himself is fighting against Ukraine and is among the occupiers.
I want to clarify the situation. Indeed, the enemy has established a staging area on Pokrovsk’s southern flank, in Selydove. From there, the enemy moves along the road, attempting to push beyond Novotroitske. Having captured the village of Novotroitske, they are now trying to advance further—specifically, towards Udachne and Kotlyne. A few weeks ago, the enemy successfully took control of Kotlyne, and now they are attempting to push towards Pokrovsk itself. To reach Kotlyne, they must cover at least 18 to 20 kilometers. Now imagine: in winter’s freezing conditions, Russian infantry has no transport and must carry everything on their backs. Vehicles cannot traverse this road. This route from Selydove towards Kotlyne and Pokrovsk is frequently documented by one of Ukraine’s top UAV commanders, Robert Brovdi, call sign Magyar, the commander of the 414th Separate Drone Brigade. One of his brigade’s units is actively operating along this road, where dozens—perhaps even over a hundred—units of Russian equipment have been destroyed. Everything is being destroyed. As a result, when tasked with a mission, Russian troops must carry everything they need to their positions and are deployed there for two, three weeks, sometimes even a month. Spending a month in a position is a common practice in the Russian infantry. They carry everything on themselves—weapons, body armor, uniforms, power banks, ammunition, water, and food. Heavily loaded, they struggle to reach their positions, marching 20 kilometers through the cold, all while under fire from Ukrainian artillery and drones. Imagine the state these Russian infantrymen are in by the time they reach their positions. By then, they are barely combat-capable. Then they station and hold these positions. As the Russian source notes, they suffer from severe shortages of everything. Why is that? Because the Ukrainian command has deployed some of its best UAV units to the southern sector near Pokrovsk. These units operate with remarkable dedication and efficiency, equipped with a substantial fleet of drones. And they are actively striking enemy positions along this direction.
The command of the Donetsk OTG (Operational-Tactical Group) created a temporary tactical group in this area. The UAV control headquarters in the area, under the command of one of the commanders from the separate National Guard Lazar unit, Kyrylo Bondarenko, has set up such a unit. They have established interaction with our best units. Together, our soldiers were able to build an algorithm to ensure that this zone was a complete zone of destruction. That is, a real drone front was created in the southern direction. And suddenly a miracle happened. After huge losses, after the destruction of all equipment, huge losses of infantry on this 20-kilometre route, the Russian offensive stopped. And Ukrainian infantrymen, soldiers of several of our brigades began to eliminate the enemy very effectively. And please note that the enemy has an advantage in everything. Russian aviation strikes with air bombs continuously, Russian artillery has ammunition, well, not much, but a little more, according to our Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief, twice as much as Ukraine, has artillery ammunition, and is inflicting destruction.
The enemy has infantry—far more than we have in this direction, unfortunately. And yet, they cannot advance any further. The Russians have the advantage in drones, including fiber-optic drones and various other systems, but they are unable to capitalize on their overwhelming superiority. Why? Because drones are used effectively—they don’t just fly on their own. Unit commanders have ensured that virtually every Ukrainian unit is equipped with drones, each led by exceptional, talented individuals. Because this person actually heads the startup. This person is responsible for engineering development, for procurement, for special ammunition, which often has to be made by yourself, for drones, which have to be modified by yourself, for finding and training people for a new military specialty that has never existed before, a combat drone operator, for organizing these people into a system, for providing these people with support, shield, a million issues are handled by the commanders of our drone units. These are unique people. And this unique system now, we have a great advantage over the Russians in this motivation, in the intelligence of Ukrainian soldiers. It is this advantage over the occupiers and these figures of drone units that give me confidence and give me grounds to say that Ukraine will win the war in drones and will win the war in entire large sections of the front. And it is up to us to ensure that a drone front like the one we have now in the south of Pokrovsk, which is also present in several other areas of our front, an effective drone front, is a real victory. This is the system that will allow us to destroy the Russian occupation army. It will not allow the enemy to make a single step forward. That is why this system must receive large-scale funding.
If we want to hold Pokrovsk and continue intensive operations in the area, we need several million dollars every month. Saving lives, high-tech warfare, and eliminating large numbers of enemy troops require resources—money for drones.
Let's look at the overall ranking for January, compiled by Ukrainian soldiers themselves and verified by the information verification team of the Ministry of Digitalisation.
This means we now have two units effectively tied for first place. Leading with a slight margin is the "Lazar" Separate Special Forces Detachment of the National Guard of Ukraine. Close behind, in second place, is the 414th Separate Brigade "Birds of Magyar" of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In third place is the "A" Special Operations Center of the Security Service of Ukraine. The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade takes fourth place. The 59th Motorized Infantry Brigade ranks fifth. In sixth place is the "Phoenix" Separate Border Guard Detachment of the State Border Guard Service. The 3rd Assault Brigade belongs to the Land Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The 59th Brigade is an assault unit of the Unmanned Systems Forces of Ukraine. The "Phoenix" detachment operates under the State Border Guard Service. Further down the list, we have the "Rarog" Battalion—part of the 24th Mechanized Brigade of the Land Forces. The 77th Separate Airmobile Brigade serves under the Air Assault Forces. The 3rd Regiment is a unit of the Special Operations Forces. The 412th Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment "Nemesis" belongs to the Unmanned Systems Forces. Following them, the 95th Air Assault Brigade ranks 11th. The 28th Mechanized Brigade comes in at 12th place. And in 13th place—worth highlighting—is the 55th Separate Artillery Brigade.
In fact, by all metrics, this is one of the best artillery units in the Ukrainian Ground Forces. At the same time, credit must be given to Brigade Commander Serhii Zhuk, who actively fosters the development of UAV units. As a result, this artillery brigade ranks among the best in terms of precision strikes. The Unmanned Systems Battalion of the 57th Motorized Infantry Brigade, operating in Vovchansk, achieves outstanding results month after month. Next is the 32nd Mechanized Brigade, actively engaged in operations south of Pokrovsk. The 82nd Air Assault Brigade is deployed in the Kursk region, working effectively alongside the 95th Air Assault Brigade. The 68th Separate Jaeger Brigade of the Ukrainian Ground Forces is also stationed near Pokrovsk. Meanwhile, the Unmanned Systems Battalion of the 63rd Separate Mechanized Brigade operates in a different direction—the Lyman direction. Notably, this battalion is commanded by Lieutenant Oleh Liashko.
Next up is the 9th Separate Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Unmanned Systems Forces and in 20th place is the Achilles Unmanned Systems Regiment, a newly created regiment deployed from a battalion of the 92nd Assault Brigade.
There are various indicators for striking different types of targets—dugouts, enemy personnel, and military equipment. Each of them is assigned a specific point value. That’s why this rating is somewhat conditional; it primarily reflects the intensity of engagements and the scale of combat operations for each unit. Naturally, every unit has different capabilities. Moreover, some units are positioned in directions where the enemy is relentlessly launching forward-forward meaty assaults, and somewhere - elastic defence.
Why I emphasize the importance of a rating. It is necessary to assess combat performance using measurable and objective criteria. If the data is not quantified and is instead based on subjective reports—"I think," "I saw," "someone said"—such information can never serve as a reliable basis for analysis. Therefore, we must identify metrics in data sets that are comparable, subject to objective control, analysis, and verification. So why do I trust this rating? Because every recorded strike can be cross-checked in Delta, the command and control system, allowing us to confirm its accuracy. These verifications do take place, and some figures are adjusted accordingly. I am not claiming this is 100% precise, but it is a structured assessment that, in my opinion, reliably reflects trends. The vast majority—99%—of this data is accurate. That’s why I want to extend my sincere gratitude to these soldiers and military units who achieved such outstanding combat results last month, in January.
At the same time, I believe two separate ratings should be created. Two ratings, because in this overall assessment, it is important to highlight that the units belong to two different categories. These include tactical units, such as tactical UAVs, which are part of combined arms brigades. They hold their designated section of the front line and perform various tasks there, including infantry support, reconnaissance, and logistics. They are responsible for their section of the front. This is an important and responsible task that may not always result in points for destruction. Therefore, we must first and foremost respect the work of those who hold the line. The second part consists of operational units. These are units focused exclusively on destruction, on strike missions, searching for and eliminating targets in specific areas. They also carry out infantry support tasks, working alongside infantry units. Our drone operators are individuals who have deep respect and admiration for the Ukrainian infantry. They do everything for their survival. But they have the freedom to manoeuvre. They can operate in different locations. So, for clarity, I think it's fair to divide it into two categories: one for operational units and the other for tactical units.
Tactical units - the third assault brigade is in first place, and the 59th assault brigade of the Unmanned Systems Forces is in second place. We can congratulate all the soldiers on their fantastic results. The unmanned systems battalion of the 24th Mechanised Brigade is in third place, and it is now being deployed as a separate unmanned systems regiment by the decision of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief ( Volodymyr Zelenskyy. And the fourth unit is the 77th Brigade, which is located in the Kupiansk direction, and this shows how many targets it destroys in the strip of the Russian First Tank Army, which is one of the best equipped.
The 95th Air Assault Brigade is in fifth place, Kursk region.
The 28th Brigade, a heroic brigade that holds a huge line, is in sixth place.
The 32nd Brigade, from Pokrovsk, is in seventh place.
The 82nd Air Assault Brigade, Kursk.
68th Jaeger Brigade, Pokrovsk.
The unmanned systems battalion of the 63rd Brigade, in the Lyman direction.
The 38th Brigade, also in the Donetsk direction.
Then I continued this rating a little bit.
The 93rd Brigade, it is fighting in different units and in two OTGs at the same time.
The 81st Brigade is simply the heroes of Bilohorivka, who have been here Bilohorivka for two years and have been destroying a huge number of Russian troops.
A single platoon holds a remarkably high position—14th place across the entire Armed Forces. This is the UAV systems platoon of the 98th Mechanized Battalion, part of the 60th Mechanized Brigade. They are operating in the village of Terny, in the Lyman direction. The reason this single platoon has achieved such an incredible kill count is that the enemy is constantly attacking there. Two Russian divisions—the 144th and 67th—are assaulting Terny simultaneously. Despite being just one platoon within a battalion, their effectiveness is truly outstanding. In the 60th Brigade, the commander decided that each UAV unit would be ranked separately rather than being grouped under a single brigade-wide ranking, as some other commanders do. I want to say that if the 60th Brigade had a single rating, and all units were rated as one within the brigade, it would be in a high place, somewhere in the top five in terms of eliminating the occupiers.
Next, the 12th Azov Special Forces Brigade in the area of Toretsk, New York, is also working very effectively to destroy the enemy.
The 80th Air Assault Brigade "Kursk region",
then the 117th Mechanised Brigade also in Donbas.
The first separate Da Vinci assault battalion is also in Donbas.
The 13th Brigade of the National Guard "Charter". It is located right near Kharkiv. The area of the village of Lyptsi. They also managed to hit a huge number of targets.
108th Separate Territorial Defence Brigade.
Next, we have the separate battalion Code 9-2—a well-known unit led by Hero of Ukraine Nastenko. They’ve slowed down a bit recently, but in previous months, they were among the absolute best in terms of effectiveness. However, following a decision by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Code 9.2, originally part of the 92nd Assault Brigade, is now being reorganized into the 475th Separate Assault Battalion, with a reinforced drone component. This will make them an even more effective combat unit. I assume that at the moment, part of the team is focused on training new personnel, which is why their activity has temporarily decreased. But in past months, Code 9.2 consistently delivered exceptional, top-tier results, standing out among all defense forces.
Another renowned unit, the K2 Battalion—the 2nd Battalion of the 54th Mechanized Brigade—currently ranks 22nd. However, a decision has also been made to reorganize K2 under the leadership of Hero of Ukraine Kyrylo Veres into the 20th Separate Regiment of Unmanned Systems.
But the regiment is just being deployed, and these are the results of one battalion so far, the same battalion, the drone company, the battalion that continues to heroically defend Siversk. So, this is the rating of 22 tactical units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine, each of which holds its own frontline. What I want to point out is that there are not lines where the enemy is actively advancing, but there are lines where the enemy is not contained anywhere. For example, where the third assault line is, it is not withdrawing, not abandoning a single position. The enemy cannot break through it, even though the brigade is being attacked by units of two Russian armies at the same time. Then there's the K-2 battalion, which is in a tank-dangerous area and covers the key height that controls Siversk. And the enemy has not been able to advance in this direction for more than two years. The 81st Brigade ‘Bilohorivka’ for more than two years, zero enemy advance. So this is Pokrovsk, Svyatoslav Golikov, the Russian occupier, telling us what is happening south of Pokrovsk, what Ukrainian soldiers have done there, what kind of defence system is built there, how the UAV headquarters works there and how our best drone units work there, destroying Russian advances as efficiently as possible and preventing Pokrovsk from being surrounded from the south. So, this demonstrates the extraordinary effectiveness of our drones
The rating of individual operational units, the best operational units of the Ukrainian Defence Forces' strike drones. For January, I emphasise.
I would like to draw attention to the fact that each structure of the Defence Forces has its own leading operational military units that are at the forefront of the development of modern combat technologies. The Lazar detachment of the National Guard of Ukraine. First place.
The second is the 414th Magyar Birds Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Third place. The SSU`s Special Operations Centre. I would like to say that all these outstanding units are led by outstanding innovators, people with great organisational capabilities, who are supported, of course, by their management. It is important to say that the Lazar Group, commanded by Colonel Yelizarov, is the person who, together with his engineers, first developed the technology for integrating Starlink into an attack drone in Ukraine. And it was a revolution at that stage of the war. We won't go into all of Lazar's performance right now, it's just fantastic. But this fantasy is confirmed by every hit with coordinates. The whole world knows Robert Brovdi, everyone watches Robert's videos every day. Fantastic technologies are being developed by the Magyars, which are effective in hitting FPV drones. Fantastic artillery destruction rates. I especially like these hits, the ones that hit the gun barrel. It's just a masterful job and incredible performance.
Next, the SSU's Special Operations Centre A. They were the first to start bombing from agro-drones systematically. From the very beginning of the war, and they started this before the full-scale invasion, they also achieved very significant results.
In fourth place, and it should also be noted that Lazar works with the serious support of both the National Guard Commander Pivnenko and the Minister of Internal Affairs Klymenko, and Magyar Birds, they work, as Magyar himself always says, with the assistance of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi. The SSU's Special Operations Centre A is given special attention by the head of the SSU, Vasyl Maliuk.
Serhii Deineka, the head of the State Border Guard Service, is in charge of the third border guard detachment, Phoenix. And it should be noted that Phoenix is now developing rapidly, and its performance is very high.
The 3rd Regiment, the Special Operations Forces based on the 3rd Regiment, has also implemented numerous technological solutions and achieved high operational results. It operates under the command of Oleksandr Trepak, the Commander of the Special Operations Forces.
The 412th Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment "Nemesis" consists of outstanding personnel, to whom we are deeply grateful for the development of this project. "Nemesis" also operates effectively using Starlink and is one of the top units within the Unmanned Systems Forces.
The 55th Artillery Brigade is truly remarkable—its personnel have turned their expertise into a passion, earning them a place among the best operational units of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
Next is the 9th Brigade of the Unmanned Systems Forces, a newly formed unit under the command of Bohdan Harnaha. It is intended to function as an operational unit. The 429th Unmanned Systems Regiment "Achilles" is another widely recognized formation, currently demonstrating high effectiveness across multiple operational directions.
And the 411th Separate Unmanned Aerial Systems Regiment "Hawks." They also operate within the Ground Forces, having been formed on the basis of the TDF (Territorial Defense Forces) within the Army. This is another powerful and highly effective unit. I must say that it is both a pleasure and an honor for me to name these individuals. I am confident that with proper funding, their development and combat effectiveness will increase significantly. And believe me, if you look at the number of successful strikes Ukrainian drones have inflicted on Russian occupiers, it is, in essence, almost equivalent to the monthly influx of assault troops that Russia sends into its meat-grinder offensives.
Answers to questions
Do you agree with Krotevych, who stated that in the pursuit of results, commanders may launch reckless operations at the cost of their personnel's lives? Currently, there is complete chaos, with various units inflating their achievements and falsifying reports about lost positions simply because of statistical requirements. And, conditionally, one OTG, the number of lost positions cannot officially exceed that of a neighboring OTG.
In the military, the practice of ranking drone strikes has now expanded to other weapons systems and even entire military units. I have also spoken about this on air, emphasizing that all key combat performance metrics should be recorded via drones, video footage, and proper verification. I raised this issue in December during a meeting with Defense Minister Rustem Umierov and also reported it on air. I am pleased that Umierov did not waste any time and that an official order on this matter has already been issued.
What needs to be noted? Are rankings necessary or not? This question has several layers. First, we see that the 12th Special Forces Brigade of the National Guard, "AZOV," has a highly effective UAV unit and is ranked among the top UAV military units. This data comes from the AZOV Brigade itself, whose Chief of Staff is Bohdan Krotevych. Clearly, the AZOV Brigade recognizes the importance of maintaining certain rankings and statistical records and is actively implementing them. Of course, this raises further questions.
The second stage. Falsification. Is it possible to falsify data? Of course it is. The rating is needed because these real problems that Krotevych mentioned existed before, only on a large scale, which could not be verified in any way. That's why we need to use drones, video recording with coordinates, because there was no objective control or accounting before. And do you think that positions were not drawn there before? I have spoken many times since the beginning of the war about lies in war, which kill more than enemy shells. The lie is primarily in the reflection of the real situation.
Didn't they used to fabricate losses that didn’t exist? I have said several times on air that during the summer offensive in Zaporizhzhia, the General Staff conducted an analysis of artillery and rocket use. According to the General Staff itself, which communicated this information to unit commanders in the area, video recording of strikes occurred in no more than 10% of cases. In other words, there were numerous instances where shells were used for area fire or strikes based on coordinates, but no proper documentation followed. This was a real problem that could not be corrected because such strikes were not systematically recorded, and there was no obligation to document them. Now, however, this obligation exists. That is why every brigade now has a unit responsible for recording enemy losses, analyzing them, and producing video reports—because all of this is now officially documented. The only thing that changes with this rating system is that this data must now be transmitted. Will someone try to falsify the data? I have no doubt—it can certainly happen. I know of cases, and I even wrote about them recently. But falsification is possible at both the executor and commander levels, and it has happened before. However, the rating system now allows errors, discrepancies, or deliberate falsifications to be identified and corrected. Because now, you can access and review the Delta layer where all this data is recorded. And only representatives of the brigade submitting these reports are authorised to manage this layer of Delta and verify its accuracy. So, dear friends, the ability to conduct objective oversight is a key advantage of recording all strike data in a unified system for analysis and accountability. This is modern warfare—the war of sensors. When you analyse only what is captured by a drone’s camera or another ground-based surveillance system. If certain events occur but are not recorded on a drone’s camera, then that commander has serious issues with organising aerial reconnaissance. In such cases, questions must be asked: Why did this happen? A proper investigation is needed. The response should be either reinforcing the commander or replacing them with someone more competent who can establish proper reconnaissance operations. Now, we have measurable indicators to objectively assess performance. Not with absolute precision, but in comparison with others—with adjacent units operating in the same conditions. This allows for fair and well-grounded conclusions. This is what modern warfare management looks like. Because only objective, verifiable, and auditable data can be properly recorded and analysed. I hope I’ve made this clear.
Is it true that the man who developed Delta was dismissed from the Armed Forces?
Marat Utiushev, who was dismissed, was the commander of the unit responsible for developing the Delta system. I genuinely regret that the Armed Forces leadership did not find a place for such an experienced person. However, Delta has always been and continues to be developed by a large team of developers, providers, volunteers, and now predominantly military personnel. So, in my opinion, this is a loss for the army, as it is left without people with such expertise. That said, Delta is still in good hands—the developers are specific individuals who continue to work on the system. Fortunately. The Delta system remains one of the key advantages of the Ukrainian Defence Forces over the Russian occupiers. Russia has not reached this technological level and will not catch up anytime soon—for many reasons. As for Marat Utiushev, he deserves nothing but gratitude. I hope his organizational skills will find application in other areas, perhaps even outside the military.
Yehor Firsov said that a maximum of 20% of crews have high-quality drone support.
I agree with Yehor. In fact, 20% is quite an optimistic estimate. The main issue is the lack of centralized funding for the development of drone forces. Recently, you've probably seen the well-known photo featuring Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Defence Minister Umierov, Digital Minister Fedorov, and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Syrskyi posing with five UAV unit commanders. These commanders are included in the ranking I mentioned earlier. The accompanying message stated that support would be provided.
What are we talking about? These are five military units: the Magyar Bird Brigade, a new regiment being created on the basis of the Raroh Battalion, a new regiment being created on the basis of the Achilles Battalion, a new regiment being created on the basis of the K-2 Battalion, and the Phoenix Border Guard Detachment. These five units received direct funding by the decision of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. Five units per year. These are the only five units. Look, I showed you the ranking—there were 11 operational units and 22 tactical UAV units, and in total, there are almost 400 UAV units in that ranking that are highly effective. And what do we see? Out of these 400 units, only five received centralized funding. All the others have no budget for 2025. How can this be possible? It's absurd, completely absurd. If we had funding—just money—we wouldn’t be stuck at 20% and bureaucracy; I believe we could improve things significantly. What does it mean when you have drones fighting? It means our soldiers don’t die, while the enemy does. You spend money and drones, but you save lives, preserve forces, and accumulate the experience of those who excel at using technology to eliminate targets. We don’t do that. Instead, we’re spending money on buying nuclear reactors in Bulgaria, then bringing them here, then installing them, then building infrastructure, protection, and substations for them. When will they be operational? Maybe in two or three years.
Or maybe it won't work, because if the frontline is not held, there will be no Ukraine. For some reason, many in Kyiv do not realize this. 600 million euros have been allocated for these reactors. I am not against it. Perhaps the Ukrainian leadership knows better and needs to buy reactors. I am not against it. I just want a sufficient amount of money to be allocated for drones. I think so. If there are 15 billion hryvnias in personal social assistance per thousand hryvnias, and 600 million euros for these reactors, then there should be at least three times as much for drones. I have calculated that if Ukraine accepts the funding, and I mean that I said this at a meeting with Secretary Blinken, that in order to stop the enemy at Pokrovsk, we need $500 million in direct funding for units in this direction. People will use this money to buy drones, ammunition, supplies and destroy the enemy in this direction. Without involving our generals. They will continue to work quietly at the headquarters, drawing points on the map, and we will not distract them from this important work. So, the price of Ukraine's victory now, as I calculated it, should be at least $4 billion a year, which should be allocated directly, exclusively, directly to military units. If we get $4 billion in 2025 to finance drones on the front, the Russian army in 2025 will use all other means, artillery, they are all needed. Artillery is very necessary, without it, drones don't work either. Infantry is needed, without it nothing works at all and there is no front. Armored vehicles are also needed to a certain extent, as well as supplies, transportation, communications, everything is needed. The Russian Federation has a military budget of 200 billion dollars, a huge country, and if we allocate 4 billion dollars for 2025, we can grind this entire Russian army, destroy it with drones alone. Well, with the help of other means. But this amount of funding for drones will allow us to simply eliminate the Russians. We will win the war. If we have such funding, in such volumes, it will not only be allocated, but will increase in the coming years. This is absolutely real money for a country that will receive at least $60-70 billion in financial assistance per year. For us, this is real money. We have a lot of money for various projects. We have the issue of destroying, stopping the enemy, creating such a kill zone. Or, as military experts often correct me, in NATO terminology, what we have done with drones south of Pokrovsk is an engagement area, that is, a zone of total control and destruction of the enemy. So this can be done for some real money. In the area of several brigades for several million dollars. In the area of the OTG, it's already hundreds of millions of dollars. On the entire front, it should be at least $3 billion, optimally $4 billion. And the enemy will simply not be able to attack. They will have neither people nor equipment. They will have nothing. They will bomb with missiles, with GABs (guided aerial bombs), but they will not be able to get close to our positions to conduct any massive assaults. Well, is the salvation of the country, independence, the existence of the nation and the lives of hundreds, thousands, millions of Ukrainians comparable to $4 billion, I believe that the state, if it were properly administered, if it were communicated to the allies, it would be 5, it could be 6 allocated. Well, it's not the kind of space money that doesn't exist in this world or that doesn't exist in Ukraine. It is possible because it is a matter of survival.
Where is the famous Terra division?
The famous Terra division remains a famous division. I advise everyone to subscribe to their Terra channel, to continue. Terra works as part of the 3rd separate assault brigade of the Ukrainian Army. And it is because there are people like Terra and other very competent, skilled operators and unit commanders. The third assault unit is on such a high place, in first place among all the tactical units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. And, in general, the Defence Forces.
I wanted to show separate tables to mark the best in destroying enemy manpower.
The 59th Assault Brigade of the Unmanned Systems Forces of Ukraine ranks first in terms of enemy personnel neutralized. Well, I can only congratulate them. I have repeatedly criticized this brigade's command, but I must acknowledge that they have managed to establish coordination, organization, and effective deployment of their skilled UAV operators. The brigade has now achieved this, and I must say that it includes some truly renowned commanders—real heroes. I have great respect for the commander with the call sign Som. He is indeed one of the key innovators in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a man who knows how to deliver results on the battlefield. His tally already numbers in the hundreds—perhaps even thousands—of eliminated Russian assault troops. I want to thank the command of the 59th Assault Brigade, all the soldiers, commanders, the commanders of the Unmanned Systems Battalion—Condor, Som—and all my many friends in this brigade. I appreciate their efforts and hope that the command of the Unmanned Systems Forces will swiftly implement the planned reforms within the brigade. The first place in terms of destruction is Pokrovsk direction. Also, the 108th Separate Battalion "Da Vinci Wolves" under Serhii Filimonov operates very effectively as part of the brigade. There are two battalions: the 1st Separate Assault Battalion "Da Vinci" and the 108th Battalion, which is part of the 59th Assault Brigade "Da Vinci Wolves." These are two distinct battalions with two different commanders. The 108th Battalion is commanded by Filimonov, while the 1st Separate Assault Battalion is led by Dmytro Filatov, call sign Perun. The 59th Assault Brigade ranks first in terms of enemy personnel losses. In second place is the exemplary infantry elimination unit of the 414th Brigade, "Birds of Magyar." Third place is held by the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade, commanded by Colonel Andrii Biletskyi, who, given the results achieved, may soon be appointed as the commander of the 3rd Army Corps of the Armed Forces of Ukraine—provided that Defense Minister Rustem Umierov authorizes it and the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief supports the decision.
The 55th Artillery Brigade. This highlights that the brigade employs artillery independently and holds first place in the ranking of artillery units. Additionally, in this ranking, it is in fourth place in terms of enemy personnel neutralized by drones—an outstanding result. Fifth place goes to the Lazar Special Forces Detachment of the National Guard of Ukraine. Sixth place is held by the 32nd Mechanized Brigade of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In seventh place is the Special Operations Center "A" of the Security Service of Ukraine. The 95th Air Assault Brigade ranks eighth. This brigade has inflicted these losses in the Kursk direction, primarily against Russian and North Korean forces. The 77th Airmobile Brigade delivered a brilliant performance in the Kupyansk sector against the First Guards Tank Army of the Moscow Military District—an elite formation of the Russian Armed Forces. Tenth place goes to the Third Regiment of the Special Operations Forces.
I want to thank you for such a huge amount of ground meat.
This is all the equipment that is available, including various types of machinery. The rating is grouped by different types of equipment. All of these units have their own specialisation, what kind of equipment they destroy. The first place in terms of the number of destroyed vehicles is occupied by the SSU's Special Operations Centre A.
The second place went to the Lazar unit of the National Guard of Ukraine.
The 414th Magyar Birds Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is in third place.
The 412th Nemesis Regiment of the Unmanned Systems Forces is in fourth place.
In fifth place is the separate border guard detachment 'Phoenix' of the State Border Guard Service. The sixth place went to the third assault brigade.
The seventh place went to the Rarog battalion of the 24th Mechanised Brigade. Now it is the Raroh regiment.
The eighth place - the 429th was a battalion. It was already an Achilles regiment, a separate regiment.
The ninth place goes to the 126th Territorial Defence Brigade. It demonstrates outstanding efficiency.
The tenth place goes to the 65th Mechanised Brigade. In the Zaporizhzhia direction, it is just skilfully eliminated Russian infantry And Russian equipment.
Now, let's look at the ranking of destroyed tanks. I want to emphasize why tanks are crucial. Tanks are the primary tool for breaking through the front line. The Russians equip their tanks with powerful protective systems—structural reinforcements, massive add-on armor, and makeshift "grills." They install advanced electronic warfare (EW) systems and attach specialized mine-clearing devices. This makes tanks the most heavily protected units in the enemy’s arsenal, which is why they are a priority target. Without tanks, breaking through the front line becomes extremely difficult—virtually impossible. It is also important to note that over the past three years, the Ukrainian Defense Forces have transformed Russia from the country with the world's largest tank fleet into a rather mediocre one. Now, the United States, China, India, and several other countries possess significantly more tanks. Russia’s stockpile of tanks is running out. OSINT analysts indicate that Russia has no more than 2,000 tank hulls left that can be refurbished, while its annual tank production is limited to approximately 300 units.
Now, let’s review the number of enemy tanks destroyed in January.1st place: Over 70 tanks destroyed by the Lazar special unit of the National Guard of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
2nd place: The 414th Brigade "Birds of Magyar."
The SSU's Special Operations Center "A" ranks third. I want to highlight that locating enemy tanks is no simple task. The enemy conceals their tanks, as they are essential for assault operations. At present, tanks can typically be detected only when they are advancing for an attack. They move in quickly, providing cover for convoys. Hitting them is not easy—it requires active search efforts. Our units have mastered this challenge with great skill.
The 3rd Assault Brigade ranks fourth overall and first among tactical units in tank destruction. In the Lyman direction, the 3rd Assault Brigade is tearing apart tank formations from two Russian armies simultaneously, including the infamous 1st Tank Army.
In fifth place is the highly effective unit of the State Border Guard Service—the 3rd Separate Detachment "Phoenix."
In sixth place is the Raroh Battalion, now a regiment, of the 24th Mechanized Brigade. It is worth noting that Raroh has a highly advanced R&D and engineering base and excels at annihilating the enemy. No tanks can escape them in their direction. They are dismantling Russian airborne tanks in Chasiv Yar.
Next, in seventh place in terms of tank destruction is the 38th Marine Brigade. This is in the Donetsk region, the Donbas, along the Donetsk axis.
Eighth place goes to the renowned 93rd Mechanized Brigade, which is simultaneously repelling Russian assaults in two OTGs and in Luhansk and Donetsk directions.
In ninth place is the Achilles Battalion, now an independent regiment, which operates across multiple directions.
And in tenth place is the 412th Nemesis Unmanned Systems Regiment. I extend my gratitude to these units, their commanders, personnel, operators, and everyone who supports them for their outstanding combat performance.
Answers to questions
Is Liashko really at war?
Friends, Oleh Liashko is indeed a commander. It seems to be that his rank is lieutenant. He is a battalion commander of the 63rd Mechanised Brigade. The performance of this battalion, as you can see, is not a fiction at all. It is a real fact. And Liashko is doing a lot to provide this battalion with military equipment and the same drones. So you can look at the results. They were reflected in the table by the verification group of the Ministry of Digitalisation. Indeed, this battalion has been repeatedly mentioned in the orders of the tactical group command and the Lyman OTG.
Is it important, in addition to targeting enemy assets, to rank who suffers fewer losses?
You are absolutely right. Analysing who suffers fewer losses is an essential aspect of combat operations. I have already said that this is necessary, and it is also a key indicator. In fact, the new directive from Defence Minister Rustem Umierov takes this into account. That is why the new ranking system, mandated by the Ministry of Defence since February, includes not only enemy destruction but also unit losses. Of course, there is still work to be done in organizing this, but it is worth noting that losses are now part of the assessment. These losses can be verified as well. I hope that in the near future, we will be able to verify losses by name—including missing personnel, killed in action, and wounded. All of this will be recorded as part of an accounting system. This is not about boasting or constantly comparing results to see who performed better. I want to emphasize that these rankings serve as a system of evaluation and analysis. The outcome of combat operations depends 50% on us and 50% on the enemy—on how actively the enemy operates in a given direction of the frontline. If the enemy does not engage a particular unit’s area of responsibility, that unit will not be able to increase its ranking, destroy enemy equipment, or neutralize enemy personnel. That is why this factor is important. However, casualty figures must be analyzed on a monthly basis, as they are just as critical. This includes enemy losses, our own casualties, and the resources expended. Everything must be documented so that it can be properly assessed and accounted for. Analyzed.
Why don’t commanders of well-known units demand funding when taking pictures with the highest leadership? The state has more resources than we do, and we still donate.
Friends, in reality, every commander of a drone unit—everyone who communicates with the leadership and is granted access—is an honest person. They all advocate for increased state investment in the development of drone capabilities. I want to emphasize that since drones represent a relatively new domain of warfare, one of its defining characteristics is that there are very few careerists among unit commanders. And among the best units, there are none at all. These are individuals with flexibility of thought, strong administrative skills, connections, and the ability to secure funding, organize operations, communicate, recruit personnel, coordinate efforts, and oversee workflows. They are like innovators, startup executives, and leaders in emerging technologies. These people are transparent in their communications, and as far as I know, all unit commanders clearly convey to Ukraine’s leadership that financial resources are needed not only for their own units but also for their comrades. Naturally, they also request additional funding.
When will they start forming the buildings?
In fact, all the regulations on the corps have been issued and signed by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi, but the main problem is that I will write about it, perhaps even tonight, perhaps tomorrow morning, no later. There is a problem that there are still no appointments of commanders. There is a directive for the formation, and still the Ministry of Defence, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's Office, well, in this case it is the Minister of Defence, has to sign the list of corps commanders. Andrii Biletskyi, for example, everyone says that he will be a corps commander, but Defence Minister Rustem Umierov has not signed the order for him yet. Well, I don't know, maybe some minister of defence, he is such a busy man that when structural reform in the army is underway, he doesn't have time to look at who to sign for the corps for two weeks. I'm asking the minister's office, his secretary, please, if someone gives this broadcast, my post, I'll be writing about it, please give the minister the list of corps commanders that the General Staff has given him for his signature. And let him sign it, please, if possible, if he has time. Because the infantrymen in the trenches don't have time, the unit commanders at the front. I understand that the minister is very busy, but he needs to be distracted for a while. After all, there is a war going on, and two weeks to think about the list of commanders is a bit too long.
Why is the data only for January? It would be interesting to see the data for at least a year to get a more objective, stable picture.
I will not publish the results for the year, because in fact, this will be information that does not need to be disclosed at this stage. I want to say that the ranking of the Ministry of Digital Transformation appeared only in September, so there is simply no data for the year. In September 2024, the ranking was published, and the first large number of units were included in the ranking only in December. That's why January 2025 is actually the second month when the data on the number of all our UAV units is recorded. And we can compare them. So a year has not yet passed since this system started working. After a year, I'll look at the situation, and if it requires disclosure of this data, and we have another delay in the state defense order, I will disclose this information in a year. But I hope that this will not be necessary, and the state will allocate sufficient funding for all the best units. For all tactical units that have their own area of responsibility. And the problem of where to get mavics and drones will at least be reduced. And not like now, when the situation is critical with the supply.
Where are the Peaky Blinders?
The National Guard unit, the Peaky Blinders, is highly effective in eliminating enemy infantry. However, they have faced some challenges with mobility. Once again, not all well-known units that make significant contributions can be ranked at this level. The Peaky Blinders are outstanding fighters, but they are a relatively small unit and need to be scaled up. The number of successful strikes depends not only on the availability of targets but also on the number of trained operators capable of hitting them. Peaky Blinders is one of the most effective drone units, but it's important to understand that they are significantly smaller than the units they are competing with—some of which consist of hundreds of personnel. The Peaky Blinders operate with a much smaller team. However, I hope that the National Guard and the Omega special unit will reinforce them with additional personnel, allowing them to significantly increase their operational effectiveness. Once they have more trained operators, they will undoubtedly enter this ranking.
Does the K-2 Regiment face problems similar to those of the 47th Brigade?
No, it does not. The 47th Brigade is a mechanized brigade, and the key challenges in deploying ground forces are fundamentally different from the organizational challenges faced by drone units. These are completely separate issues. Kyrylo Veres is a highly experienced commander, and such organizational problems will not arise in this case.
What is your assessment of the drone battalion of the 3rd Spartan Brigade of the National Guard?
It is very high. The 3rd Brigade is one of our most capable military units. But now the brigade is holding a very important area near Pokrovsk. It is destroying a significant number of the enemy. But, of course, the brigade needs to be replenished with people. The only problem there is that the brigade needs to have its backbone, the core of combat-ready, experienced operators and commanders, replenished with people. This brigade will be able to achieve very great results. I have great respect for the brigade's performance, especially in the Zaporizhzhia direction and here in Donbas, which is simply impressive. This is high efficiency.
I wonder if there are statistics on how many drones the state and volunteers have purchased.
Yes, there are statistics. I won't go public with it yet, although, of course, I have it. In January 2025, our drone units—based on confirmed video footage alone—inflicted losses on at least 20,000 Russian occupiers across the entire front. This is a staggering number. According to Russia’s Ministry of Defense, they mobilize up to 30,000 soldiers per month. Even if that number were 40,000, these losses would still be immense. Of course, not all of these Russian troops were eliminated, but believe me, the majority of them are KIA (killed in action). I want to emphasize that drones, in coordination with infantry, artillery, missile units, and armored forces, are the key weapon that enables us to win this war. Right now, we have an advantage in drones. If the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's Staff immediately assesses the situation on the front line and if the government urgently allocates funds for the procurement of drones—because this requires a production cycle—then we can win the 2025 campaign. However, as of now, the decision on centralized funding for most of the UAV units you see has not been made. If urgent action is not taken, we are heading toward a critical crisis in the drone war due to a shortage of drones and essential resources. This is happening because the government has failed to make the necessary decision. Funding has been allocated to five units, enough for their development, but not for all of them—not even for the best-performing ones. What does this mean? That in January, the enemy was writing panicked reports, claiming they were being overwhelmed by our drones, that they could do nothing? In January alone, 20,000 enemy troops were neutralized. But by May or June, if immediate decisions are not made right now, we will no longer be able to dictate such conditions to the enemy. We won't be able to eliminate them in such numbers. We won't be able to control the front in the same way. Funding is needed—immediately. I have stated my estimate: $4 billion per year for all defense forces. I believe this is the minimum the state must allocate. And the state has this money. I emphasize: our Western allies and partners provide us with significantly greater financial support. This funding must be prioritized for defense, for protecting our infantry, to fight and eliminate the enemy using drones, instead of sending soldiers with rifles into direct combat against enemy drones on the front line. The fewer infantry troops exposed on the front line, the more drones we have in operation. Every soldier should be backed by a platoon of aerial reconnaissance and strike drones. When the enemy launches an attack, the first thing they should see—in their final moments—are hundreds of drones descending upon them. Only then, perhaps, will some of them manage to crawl forward, just to surrender to our troops. This is how a properly organized technological war is fought.
Can we fight with drones? Can we, Ukraine, defeat Russia in a modern high-tech war? The rating of drones that I showed you definitely says yes. We can kill not 20,000 Russians a month. We can eliminate 30 or 40 thousand occupiers. This is a technological and financial task for us now. Organisationally, it is already being solved. We have the structure, we have the people, we have the commanders who will build such a system not only in the Donetsk OTG, but in all areas of the frontline. We have every opportunity to win this war. First in the 2025 campaign, then in the 2026 campaign. This requires proper planning and proper allocation of state finances. And this is the responsibility of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. I acknowledge and respect the fact that, on the initiative of Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov was given the authority and resources in 2023 to establish targeted funding for specific drone programs. Time has proven that this was an exceptionally effective decision. It delivered significant results and created a battlefield advantage. And now? Fedorov’s team has been sidelined. There is no logic, no order, no strategy in place. Someone must take responsibility. If Andrii Yermak wants to oversee the allocation of funds, let him do it. If Minister Umierov wants to do it, let him take charge. But there must be a single accountable individual. That person must have resources. And these resources must be clearly distributed to all our main drone units, both at the tactical level in our tactical combat brigades that hold the line at the front so that they do not have problems with the FPV mavic, and to operational units, we need a much larger number of drones for various purposes, reconnaissance, fixed-Wing, interceptors, and strike drones of various types. And we will win the war. Instead of spending billions on compensations for fallen soldiers, let’s invest those billions into drones. Let the occupiers be the ones who die—so that our people live. So that Ukrainians live. That is what victory looks like. We can create a 20-kilometer-wide scorched zone, devastated by drones, for the entire Russian army across the front line. And soon, they will be forced to admit that advancing means marching 20 kilometers on foot. That is when the Russian offensive will collapse. They will not just stop—they will flee. Some may think this sounds unrealistic, even impossible. But I look at combat data. I analyze real battlefield results. And the statistics prove that we are already doing this today—and we can do it even better tomorrow. We can eliminate so many of them that Russia simply won’t have enough manpower left to replace them. Right now, there is an infantry crisis in the Russian army. They lack reinforcements. Because today, there are more drones than Russians and North Koreans combined. This is what is stopping and paralyzing their offensives: control of the low-altitude airspace directly above the frontline. Our task now is clear. I hope that Ukraine’s leadership will recognize this critical turning point. I hope that public opinion, that all Ukrainians, will amplify this message—this video, these facts. Public demand must push softly President Zelenskyy to take the next decisive step. Not just to acknowledge that drones have changed the war—not just to recognize their success in eliminating Russian armor—but to fully commit to drone warfare as the key to victory. Drones are not just destroying machines—they are defeating enemy troops. To achieve this, it is necessary to inject funding into existing organizational structures and establish effective management. The organizational framework is already in place. This is a real victory in the war that Ukraine can and must achieve—because this is a war for our existence.
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Glory to Ukraine!
