Ukraine Says It Is Developing Attack Drones
2023-01-04
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1A Ukrainian official says the country is developing attack drones designed to fight against Russian military aircraft.
2Ukraine's Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, told The Associated Press the country wants to expand its use of drones in the war against Russia. Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February.
3So far, Ukraine has mostly used drones for military observation activities.
4But Fedorov said the next step is to develop drones with increased battle abilities.
5"These are both exploding drones and drones that fly up to three to 10 kilometers and hit targets," he said.
6Russian officials have accused Ukraine of launching several drone strikes on military bases in recent weeks.
7In one attack, Russia said its forces shot down a drone entering the Engels airbase.
8The airbase sits inside Russia, about 600 kilometers from Ukraine's border.
9Russia's military said debris from the Ukrainian drone killed three soldiers but did not damage any aircraft.
10The base keeps bomber aircraft that Russia has used in attacks against Ukraine.
11Ukrainian military officials have not officially admitted to carrying out such drone strikes.
12Russia has used Iranian-made Shahed drones for its airstrikes in Ukrainian territory in recent weeks.
13Russia has used drones along with other weapons, including rockets, guided missiles and artillery.
14Fedorov told the AP, "I can say already that the situation regarding drones will change drastically in February or March."
15In his position, Fedorov oversees the country's internet and mobile communication systems.
16He admitted that it had been difficult to keep mobile communications operating for both civilian and military purposes during the war.
17At times, Fedorov said, fewer than half of mobile phone towers are operating in the capital, Kyiv.
18That is because Russian airstrikes have destroyed or damaged equipment that powers them.
19Ukraine's government is currently trying to link the country's mobile phone towers to back-up power systems so they can keep operating when airstrikes damage equipment.
20The only back-up systems currently available are ones like the Starlink satellite internet service.
21Starlink is owned and operated by American technology company SpaceX.
22Starlink is designed to provide high-speed internet service to rural and under-connected areas of the world.
23SpaceX chief Elon Musk began providing the service in Ukraine during the early days of the war after Fedorov tweeted a request to Musk.
24About 24,000 Starlink stations are already in operation in Ukraine.
25The country is currently seeking support from its European Union partners to help bring at least 10,000 more stations to Ukraine.
26Fedorov compared Space X's donation of the Starlink system to other military equipment supplied by the United States.
27He noted the satellite internet service has helped the country's military improve its defense abilities against Russian forces.
28"Thousands of lives were saved," he said.
29Fedorov added that his ministry - which was created just three years ago - currently spends about 70 percent of its time on developing military technologies.
30I'm Bryan Lynn.
1A Ukrainian official says the country is developing attack drones designed to fight against Russian military aircraft. 2Ukraine's Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, told The Associated Press the country wants to expand its use of drones in the war against Russia. Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February. 3So far, Ukraine has mostly used drones for military observation activities. But Fedorov said the next step is to develop drones with increased battle abilities. "These are both exploding drones and drones that fly up to three to 10 kilometers and hit targets," he said. 4Russian officials have accused Ukraine of launching several drone strikes on military bases in recent weeks. In one attack, Russia said its forces shot down a drone entering the Engels airbase. The airbase sits inside Russia, about 600 kilometers from Ukraine's border. 5Russia's military said debris from the Ukrainian drone killed three soldiers but did not damage any aircraft. The base keeps bomber aircraft that Russia has used in attacks against Ukraine. 6Ukrainian military officials have not officially admitted to carrying out such drone strikes. Russia has used Iranian-made Shahed drones for its airstrikes in Ukrainian territory in recent weeks. Russia has used drones along with other weapons, including rockets, guided missiles and artillery. 7Fedorov told the AP, "I can say already that the situation regarding drones will change drastically in February or March." 8In his position, Fedorov oversees the country's internet and mobile communication systems. He admitted that it had been difficult to keep mobile communications operating for both civilian and military purposes during the war. 9At times, Fedorov said, fewer than half of mobile phone towers are operating in the capital, Kyiv. That is because Russian airstrikes have destroyed or damaged equipment that powers them. 10Ukraine's government is currently trying to link the country's mobile phone towers to back-up power systems so they can keep operating when airstrikes damage equipment. 11The only back-up systems currently available are ones like the Starlink satellite internet service. Starlink is owned and operated by American technology company SpaceX. 12Starlink is designed to provide high-speed internet service to rural and under-connected areas of the world. SpaceX chief Elon Musk began providing the service in Ukraine during the early days of the war after Fedorov tweeted a request to Musk. 13About 24,000 Starlink stations are already in operation in Ukraine. The country is currently seeking support from its European Union partners to help bring at least 10,000 more stations to Ukraine. 14Fedorov compared Space X's donation of the Starlink system to other military equipment supplied by the United States. He noted the satellite internet service has helped the country's military improve its defense abilities against Russian forces. "Thousands of lives were saved," he said. 15Fedorov added that his ministry - which was created just three years ago - currently spends about 70 percent of its time on developing military technologies. 16I'm Bryan Lynn. 17The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. 18_____________________________________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20drone - n. a pilotless aircraft 21debris - n. broken items or waste material 22drastic - adj. extreme or sever in effect or action 23mobile - adj. able to move or be moved easily 24tower - n. a very tall, narrow building, or part of a building 25______________________________________________________________________ 26What do you think of this story? We want to hear from you. We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 27Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.