Russia

Shaheds, Lancets, fiber-optic FPVs and the counter-drone scramble — Russia’s drone war, tracked.

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Reporters on beat

Oct 19

Last updated

Robert Brovdi in camouflage uniform and cap standing in front of a burned-out apartment building

Ukraine

Ukraine's Drones Kill the General Who Told Putin Kostiantynivka Fell

Ukraine's drone forces killed Maj. Gen. Anton Grunis, the Hero of Russia who told Putin in July that Kostiantynivka had fallen. Moscow confirmed the death.

Haye KestelooSep 16

Fuel storage tanks burning at a Russian oil depot after a Ukrainian drone strike, with firefighters working in the snow

Ukraine

Ukraine's Drones Broke The Diesel Market. Trump Wants Them Stopped.

European gasoil margins hit about $94 over Brent as Ukrainian drones cut Russian refining to a 24-year low. US diesel just passed $6 a gallon.

Haye KestelooSep 15

View from a Russian drone camera looking down on a paved road in Kherson, with pedestrians walking along it and a recording overlay showing REC, 1.5x zoom and a running timer

Legal

Yale Expert: Civilian Drone Builders Risk Losing Legal Protection

Two drone experts warn that civilians who build and move attack drones may forfeit noncombatant status, and the texts deciding it date to 2009.

Haye KestelooSep 15

Tail section of a crashed drone lying on a sandy beach beside the water

Counter-Drone

NATO Jets Down a Drone Over Lithuania, Days After Chasing Birds

Italian Typhoons shot down a drone over Lithuania early Tuesday, the first ever downed in Lithuanian airspace. Two days earlier, the alert was birds.

Haye KestelooSep 15

Ukrainian FPV strike quadcopter hovering low over a forest track with a payload module on its back, illustrating Anthropic's report on Russian developers using Claude Code to build autonomous kamikaze drone swarm software

Ukraine

Anthropic Catches Russians Using Claude to Code Self-Targeting Drones

Anthropic says a freelance Russian team used Claude Code to build kamikaze drone swarm software that picks targets, including people, with no human veto.

Haye KestelooSep 12