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Use Technology to Manage Risk from Chinese Drones
Building a supply chain independent from China is impractical. For now, leverage data, connectivity, and automation to reduce risk. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine How can the US and other democracies safely use drones, including those made in China or using Chinese components? Commercial and civilian drone use has expanded in recent years and will undoubtedly continue to grow as tech evolves. Drones use the airspace in ways that challenge existing regula
34 minutes ago


No Drone Unturned: Ukraine’s Tech Scouts
Ukrainian and foreign fighters with experience of the front are scouring the globe to find the best technology to see off Moscow’s forces. Ukraine, with limited manpower, needs asymmetric advantages wherever they can be found. Innovation is decentralized across many Ukrainian units, and across the country, volunteers, engineers, and soldiers are working hand-in-hand to develop new technology. But there’s a limit to commanders’ capacity to withdraw soldiers from the front to t
3 days ago


Censored AI: YandexGPT as an Instrument of Russian Propaganda
Artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming the primary source of information for millions of people. For authoritarian states, control over generative AI has turned into a critically important element of controlling and managing the masses. This is precisely why Russian language-model developments and the services connected to them deserve close attention. But are they really a “sovereign” technology of Russian origin? Consider the example of YandexGPT – a large languag
4 days ago


Winter is coming: Ukraine warns of escalating Russian ballistic strikes
Source: Darnytsia District State Administration Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal has warned that Moscow is likely to expand attacks on the country’s civilian population and critical infrastructure in the coming months as Russian President Vladimir Putin seeks to finally break Ukraine’s resistance. “Russia’s goal now is to destroy our water supplies,” commented Shmyhal in an interview with Politico this week. “Last winter they targeted electricity and heating, but you c
6 days ago


Lessons Learned From Russia’s War Against Ukraine: The Case of Lithuania
Source: Lithuianian Armed Forces Lithuania’s security environment has fundamentally changed over the past decade. Public and institutional thinking, however, has not fully adapted. Lithuania is no longer operating in peacetime. Alongside sustained Russian rhetoric about a future conventional invasion, Lithuania is already facing an ongoing hostile campaign below the threshold of open conflict, eroding the distinction between peace and war. Those actions go beyond traditional
Aug 21


We should not fear a post-Putin Russia
Foto: Vladimir Velengurin / KP As Russian President Vladimir Putin grows increasingly isolated domestically and internationally amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, there is renewed speculation over who might one day succeed him and what that this would mean for Russia. “For the first time since the conflict began, Russians are starting to imagine a future without Putin,” Britain’s Economist reported in May. The prospect of new Russian leadership provokes mixed reactions. Wh
Aug 14


“Grandpa” on clay feet: why Russian propaganda no longer hides the system’s diagnosis
The Kremlin’s propaganda is increasingly documenting the symptoms of a systemic crisis, while criticism of Putin is no longer an absolute taboo even among former supporters of the regime. After the failure of the “Kyiv in three days” plan, when Russian propaganda was filled with triumphant rhetoric, its propagandists mastered a peculiar genre: they could spend hours listing the problems facing their country, yet with almost mystical persistence avoided discussing the causes o
Aug 13


Despite what Putin says, Russia and Iran are linking the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East
Screenshot form Tass WASHINGTON—On July 25, Ukraine struck an Iranian cargo ship in the Caspian Sea, killing a sailor in the attack. At the time, Ukraine stated that the ship was carrying military equipment to Russia, while Iranian officials claimed it was a commercial ship and warned Kyiv of reprisal. In the days that followed, Tehran reportedly considered carrying out a retaliatory strike, until Iranian Foreign Minister Abas Araghchi spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart, An
Aug 12


Russia’s Shadow War Surges Southward
The Kremlin’s on-again-off-again campaign to intimidate and disorientate European allies is picking up once more. Galati, Romania / Source: Digi24 Russia’s shadow war against NATO allies has moved southwards, with three drone breaches of Romanian airspace in as many days, and a surge of other incursions in recent weeks. Together with another attack on Poland, where a Russian cruise missile struck 100 km (62 miles) from the country’s eastern border on July 30, the incidents su
Aug 11


Wartime Ukraine’s people power protests are Putin’s worst nightmare
Ukrainians have taken to the streets in recent weeks to voice their concerns over the sudden removal of the country’s reformist defense minister. Rolling protests in Kyiv and cities across Ukraine have sparked the biggest political crisis since the start of the full-scale war and have highlighted the continued strength of the Ukrainian population’s democratic instincts. Photo: Mykhailo Tyunkin, Graty The remarkable readiness of ordinary Ukrainians to defend their rights and h
Aug 6


Ukraine-Poland: Testing History to Destruction
The two neighbors are mutually dependent in fighting the Russian menace. They should remember this when historical disputes erupt. Photo: ТСН 2026 is the Year of Jerzy Giedroyć. Americans may be forgiven for not recognizing one of Central Europe’s leading 20th-century democratic intellectuals, but Poles have no excuse. The Polish Senate decided to honor him last year. Most of the country’s elite, including President Karol Nawrocki, a professional historian and former director
Aug 5


Putin’s pitiful naval parade highlights his inability to stop Ukrainian drones
Russian Navy Day celebrations. July 26, 2026. Freeze frame from the IZ.RU video Russian President Vladimir Putin has faced widespread ridicule this week following Sunday’s dramatically downgraded Russian Navy Day celebrations, with detractors claiming the sorry spectacle has underlined his failure to secure Russian airspace against Ukrainian drones. Russia’s annual Navy Day festivities have traditionally served as an opportunity to flex the country’s maritime muscles. In the
Aug 4


Russian Mass Mobilization? A Non-Denial Denial
When Putin’s mouthpieces talk about something, there’s always a reason. Russians have renewed cause to worry. It has been a long time coming, but ordinary Russians are now experiencing a fraction of the horrors inflicted by their regime upon their neighbor. Now too, they’re hearing their state-directed media hint about a darker future of mass mobilization for the despot’s war. Unlike Russia’s military, Ukraine’s armed forces are not targeting civilians, but everyday life is n
Aug 3


Spoofing and Spillover: Russia Targets NATO
Russia is using electronic warfare as another technique in its shadow war against NATO. Illustrative picture: Gabriel Vasiliu / Unsplash Russian shadow warfare is a many-headed hydra. Its efforts can rise and fall in intensity, can close airports or menace heads of state, target electricity grids in midwinter and sever undersea cables. The latest threat comes from Russia’s highly developed electronic warfare capabilities, which are being used to misdirect explosive-filled dro
Jul 29


A NATO ally holds the key to Europe’s drone wall, and it isn’t Washington
Source: 427th Separate Regiment of Unmanned Systems "RAROG" When NATO leaders gathered in Ankara on July 7–8, they made counterdrone defense the summit’s signature industrial commitment, pledging more than forty billion dollars over five years, a new NATO counterdrone marketplace, and a fivefold increase in drone-operator training by the end of 2027. The commitment is driven by a growing sense of urgency in a Europe that has discovered that the simplest and cheapest weapons c
Jul 28


Ukraine’s national recovery must go far beyond rebuilding what was lost
As international efforts to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine continue, it is also vital to look beyond the battlefield and address the issue of Ukraine’s recovery. This will shape Europe’s future for decades to come, with profound implications for European security and the democratic world’s ability to respond to international aggression. Photo: Petro Poyman/MAIDAN.ORG.UA Since the early stages of Russia’s full-scale invasion, the discussion over Ukraine’s recovery and rec
Jul 24


Russia’s Raddled Stock Market
Vladimir Putin hoped to double the size of the stock market. He has comprehensively failed, and there’s no obvious fix to be found. Russia’s stock market is stuck in one of its worst stretches in decades. The MOEX index has now fallen for 17 straight weeks — the longest unbroken decline since 1997 — and is back down near the lows it hit on the day Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Four and a half years of war have brought the market full circle: a catastrophic crash, a
Jul 20


Fable Follies Sharpen Europe’s Sovereignty Conundrum
Although the US government lifted an export control order on Anthropic’s artificial intelligence model, the damage to transatlantic ties remains. Illustration: Steve A Johnson / Unsplash The episode has sharpened Europe’s dilemma over digital sovereignty. Instead of accepting a false choice between depending on US AI software or building an independent European AI capability, policymakers on the continent should follow the example that is already being set by industry and mix
Jul 17


Fighting a land war in the digital age: How armies must reinvent themselves - or be destroyed by those that do
Source: T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı Digital-age warfare has already started In 2020, Azerbaijani forces completed the recapture of Nagorno-Karabakh in a war that lasted just forty-four days. Opposing positions, however well-fortified, operated with an industrial-age mindset, and thus were spotted, tracked, and obliterated before defenders could understand and react. The weapon responsible was not an F-35 or a cruise missile, but a drone, as analysts at Defense One were among
Jul 16


Kremlin Mouthpieces Raise the Specter of 1917
Putin’s propagandists are battling to bridge the gap between a supposedly victorious war against Ukraine and worsening fuel shortages. Vladimir Putin doesn’t like acknowledging the problems his policies create, especially those resulting from his war of aggression against Ukraine. So it was notable when he grudgingly admitted the success of Ukraine’s aerial barrage on July 8. “It’s completely obvious that the enemy is trying to damage the economy,” he said. “But the main thin
Jul 13
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