Ukraine’s recent strikes in Crimea are part of a campaign to render the peninsula unusable as a staging ground for Russian forces, according to Maj. Robert ‘Magyar’ Brovdi, the commander leading Ukraine’s drone war.

Ukraine’s Strategy

Brovdi stated that his forces could strike seven times more military targets in Crimea if Western allies provided funding more quickly. The summer campaign in Crimea has already inflicted significant damage, disrupting supply lines and blinding Russian air defenses.

Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, led by Brovdi, are working to dismantle Crimea’s role as a naval base, which would be a blow to Russia’s presence near NATO’s borders. The campaign’s early results have not been made public, but Ukrainian intelligence has indicated that Russian authorities have ordered military commands and security services to relocate off the peninsula.

Russia’s Response

Russia is working to counter Ukraine’s edge by installing jamming systems and building its own satellite communications system to rival Starlink. Brovdi warned that this could pose a risk to the entire planet, as a dictatorship would gain access to information across the globe.

Ukraine has also targeted Wildberries, Russia’s largest online marketplace, which Brovdi described as a supply platform for the Russian military. The strikes aim to make ordinary Russians feel the war directly, in hopes that the resulting desire to end it could weigh on Russia’s ability to keep fighting.

Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.