Following the recent back-and-forth drone attacks between Russia and Ukraine, Moscow has started deploying its top-of-the-line equipment against the Ukrainian forces in the Kharkiv region. The region has witnessed intense military actions in the past few days after Ukraine struck Russia with two massive drone attacks, including one that targeted its strategic airbase in Siberia.
Russia responded with AI Kamikaze drones, along with slow loitering munitions, followed by an intense barrage of cruise and fast-moving ballistic missiles, destroying key power and energy infrastructure inside Ukraine. Russia on Tuesday launched a third wave of drone strikes on the Kharkiv region, killing three and wounding as many as 60 people.
A week earlier, on Monday, Russia carried out its second retaliatory strike on Ukraine, launching around 479 drones and 20 missiles after it fired 460 drones and missiles during the previous attack.
According to defence experts, Moscow has built a whopping 1.5 million-drone fleet while it is at war with Ukraine; a significant number of these drones can be equipped with light loitering to heavy precision bombs launched on the Ukrainian front lines.
The war in Ukraine has transformed from what it initially looked like as a Russian ground invasion in 2022 to high-tech drone warfare in 2025.
Although this is not the first time drones have taken centrestage in the conflict, earlier in 2020, during the Azerbaijan-Armenia Nagorno-Karabakh war, Turkish-made drones played a decisive role in Azerbaijan's victory.
However, Russia and Ukraine have taken drone warfare to another level by infusing artificial intelligence into the kamikaze drones. Additionally, the Ukraine war has been pretty complex when it comes to understanding how it transforms each year.
In 2025, according to analysts, the US, a primary backer of the Zelensky regime, has tested some 200 of the latest weapons in Ukraine against Russia. Experts suggest that the US tested, retested and modified weapons as the war in Ukraine was going on.
Besides testing the new weapons, the US also provided Ukraine with a substantial amount of military aid, including weapons.
The US has sent various weapons systems, such as the HIMARS and M777 howitzer, and is also providing Ukraine with ammunition for its artillery.
However, the outdated military aid has proven inefficient in deterring the Russian armed forces from advancing on the battle lines across the entire war theatre.
Some open-source intelligence (OSINT) reports also suggest that the US supplied some of its battle-tested weapons to Israel and sold some to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE as part of a $1 trillion quadrilateral deal.
Russia, on the other hand, resorted to clever tactics, deploying Soviet-era weaponry in the initial days and slowly replacing old tech with new, sophisticated weapons as Ukrainian forces were witnessing depletion in supplies in 2024. Russia also tested more than 100 new weapons in Ukraine and sold military tech worth billions to importers, as Moscow remained the second biggest arms exporter in 2024 despite being active in the war.
Experts also suggest that Russia is using Ukraine as a proving ground for legacy and next-generation systems to be deployed in future warfare, coupled with AI-enabled drones, hypersonic missiles, and modern fighters, which indicates a shift to tech-enhanced warfare.
What it suggests is that the claims from some Western experts fall short of the criteria that Russia’s economy was facing serious constraints; as the reports indicate, the Russian economy not only thrived in these years, but its currency also emerged as the strongest in 2024.
Fast forward to June 2025: the Russian forces are advancing from all fronts and gaining more territory in Ukraine.
Kharkiv seems to be another region falling to the calculated advances by Russian forces in the war, threatening the entire regime in Kyiv.
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With Russia deploying its latest state-of-the-art weapons, including the newly inducted SU-35S, Oreshnik hypersonic missiles, and AI drones, the Ukrainian armed forces might collapse sooner than expected.
For Ukraine and most of its EU backers, the best way to support Ukraine in this war is perhaps by expressing a commitment to facilitating the peace process between the two; otherwise, the war is heading towards a disastrous defeat for Ukraine.
Given the present scenario, with the West funnelling more money into Ukraine, especially funds to be used during emergencies it has further given false hope to Ukraine while emboldening the Russian resolve to resort to more serious and deadly means to achieve the war objectives.
The on-ground situation creates confounding problems, as increased backing may inadvertently escalate the conflict rather than lead to a resolution. The war in Ukraine provides valuable insights into adapting to technological changes, developing fluid military strategies, and ensuring the competent use of resources and international cooperation.
By Waseem Ahmad Ganie
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