Flames and destruction after Russia strikes Odesa and Sumy
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Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
New Russian Drone Made Completely Of Chinese Components: Ukrainian Intelligence
Russia is now using decoy drones with 100% of its components made in China, Ukraine's Defense Intelligence Directorate (GUR) claimed on Tuesday. While Russian weapons have long contained parts from China as well as many other nations, this marks likely the first time one of its drones is completely made up of Chinese parts. The discovery is additional proof of Beijing's growing support for Moscow's war in Ukraine. The drone in question is a new decoy Russia is using to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses, according to GUR. The delta-winged weapon loosely resembles the infamous Shahed-136 drone, but is much smaller, according to GUR. In addition to serving as a decoy, this drone may also pack a warhead weighing up to 15 kilos (about 33 pounds). As we reported yesterday, Russia is already overwhelming Ukrainian air defenses with more drones and improved tactics. 'All components and blocks [in the new drones] are of Chinese origin,' according to GUR's War&Sanctions project, which maintains a database of thousands of foreign components found in Russian weapons. ❗ GUR publishes components of a new Russian UAV used as a decoy and reconnaissance, it can also carry a warhead weighing up to 15 kg. ▪ All components and blocks are of Chinese origin. ▪ The UAV is also equipped with a Chinese copy of Australian RFD900x data transmission… — MAKS 25 ���� �� (@Maks_NAFO_FELLA) July 22, 2025 GUR recovered at least two of these drones, the second of which contained two components of unknown origin. Nearly half of the parts in the first drone come from one company, CUAV Technology. Those parts include a flight controller with an autopilot, navigation modules and antennas, and an airspeed sensor with a pilot tube, GUR stated. The company is 'a National High-Tech Enterprise and Guangdong Provincial Specialized, Refined, Unique, and Innovative Enterprise specializing in open-source unmanned systems technology,' according to the CUAV Technology Co. website. 'It integrates R&D, production, and sales.' The discovery of these CUAV Technology Co. components came even though the company announced restrictions on the supply of products to Ukraine and Russia in October 2022. The stated goal was to prevent their use for military purposes, GUR noted. 'However, in 2023, the Russian Federation presented a vertical take-off UAV of allegedly its own design, which turned out to be a CUAV Technology product available on AliExpress,' GUR added. The new Russian decoy drone is different because instead of being an off-the-shelf purchase, it represents a new method of indigenous production. The War Zone cannot independently verify these claims. We've reached out to CUAV Technology Co. and GUR for more details and will update this story with any pertinent information provided. Some of the Chinese components found in a new Russian decoy drone. (GUR) GUR's findings about the new Russian decoy drone come as Moscow is increasingly relying on Beijing to provide technology for its drones, especially artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Last month, GUR found that a Russian V2U barrage drone used in the Sumy region could autonomously search and select targets using AI. The V2U relied on the Chinese Leetop A203 minicomputer and a central processor with an American NVIDIA Jetson Orin module. We first wrote about how AI would make drones even deadlier last year, which you can read about here. Russia is also relying on China to help extend the range of its fiber-optic controlled drones by providing spools allowing those weapons to reach as far as 50km (about 31 miles). The increased reach gives the Russians a big advantage for a system that is already creating havoc for Ukrainian forces. Fiber optics are used by both sides because it makes drones impervious to jamming and other forms of electronic warfare and helps mitigate the effects of terrain that can also interfere with radio control. Chinese working on Russian drones say they now have 50km fiber optic cables. Ukraine is fighting every enemy of western civilization while the US is increasingly on the side of the bad guys. — Jay in Kyiv (@JayinKyiv) June 5, 2025 This new decoy drone is one of many Russian weapons relying on foreign parts. However, previous recoveries by GUR show a wider range of origin for components. For instance, a Russian Shahed-136 strike drone GUR obtained contained dozens of components from the U.S. as well as parts from Iran, Taiwan and other nations. Last year, we noted that GUR found dozens of foreign components in a Russian S-70 Okhotnik-B (Hunter-B) flying wing unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) downed in a case of friendly fire. S-70 Okhotnik-B (Hunter-B) flying wing unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV). Russian MOD Screenshot/via Other Russian weapons, like the Banderol S-8000 cruise missile, contain parts from Switzerland, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea as well as the U.S. and China, according to the GUR database. In the very early days of the all-out invasion, GUR shared with us a list of several weapons packed with foreign chips. They were found inside a recovered example of the 9S932-1, a radar-equipped air defense command post vehicle that is part of the larger Barnaul-T system, a Pantsir air defense system, a Ka-52 'Alligator' attack helicopter, and a Kh-101 (AS-23A Kodiak) cruise missile. These parts all found their way into Russian weapons despite international sanctions designed to prevent that from happening. Beyond components, China appears to have provided Russia with at least some complete weapons systems. In May, we reported that Russia was using a new Chinese laser system to shoot down Ukrainian drones. The system seen in a video posted to Telegram appeared to be at least extremely similar to a system Beijing has apparently already provided to Iran, which you can read more about here. However, it remains unclear how widely this system is being fielded by Russia. You can see images and video of those systems below. While the sensor arrangement seems to have been altered, the system observed in Russian service strongly resembles the Chinese Shen Nung 3000/5000 anti-drone laser. — Fabian Hinz (@fab_hinz) May 31, 2025 Russia's growing reliance on China for technology comes as the two nations are drawing closer in what can be described as a relationship of convenience to challenge the U.S. and its allies. Officially, China has expressed neutrality in this conflict; however, its actions say otherwise. Earlier this month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the European Union's top diplomat that Beijing can't accept Russia losing its war against Ukraine because it could allow the U.S. to turn its full attention to China, CNN reported. The network cited an official briefed on the talks. The Chinese foreign minister's admission came during what the official said was 'a four-hour meeting with EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas' in Brussels that 'featured tough but respectful exchanges, covering a broad range of issues from cyber security, rare earths to trade imbalances, Taiwan and Middle East.' The official said Wang's private remarks suggested Beijing 'might prefer a protracted war in Ukraine that keeps the United States from focusing on its rivalry with China,' CNN added. 'Wang's comments echo concerns of critics of China's policy that Beijing has geopolitically much more at stake in the Ukrainian conflict than its admitted position of neutrality.' China's assistance to Russia differs from what North Korea is providing in terms of missiles, artillery, millions of rounds of shells and more than 11,000 troops fighting against Ukraine. However, the electronics flowing from China are critical to Russia's military-industrial complex. Given that Russia has had time to shift its supply chain to Chinese sources while simultaneously spinning up its economy into a wartime configuration, it is likely we will see many more of these components installed throughout Moscow's arsenal. Contact the author: howard@
New York Times
13 hours ago
- New York Times
Wartime Protests in Ukraine Target Zelensky for the First Time
Thousands of people gathered in the streets of Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday night to protest moves by President Volodymyr Zelensky's government to weaken anticorruption institutions, in the country's first major antigovernment demonstration in 3½ years of war. The protest outside the president's office in central Kyiv, including civilians and soldiers, was the most significant fracture so far in the national unity that has helped Ukraine survive a grueling and bloody fight against a Russian invasion. The government did not immediately make a statement on the gathering. 'My husband is in the trenches and this is not what they are fighting for,' said Kateryna Amelina, 31. 'This could be the destruction of 10 years of work by civil society.' The demonstration, promoted widely on social media, came hours after Ukraine's Parliament, controlled by Mr. Zelensky's party, passed a measure that would strip away the independence of two agencies responsible for investigating and prosecuting corruption. Protesters called on Mr. Zelensky to veto the legislation, which would give Ukraine's prosecutor general, appointed by the president, new powers over anticorruption agencies. On Monday, the security services raided the offices of the two agencies, which have been looking into people in Mr. Zelensky's circle, claiming that they had been infiltrated by Russian intelligence. The crowd grew on Tuesday evening as the sun set on a hill just above Maidan Square, where more than a decade ago crowds gathered to protest the corruption of the Kremlin-aligned president at the time, Viktor F. Yanukovych, leading to his ouster. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
New York Times
20 hours ago
- New York Times
Zelensky's Government Takes Aim at Corruption Fighters
Volodymyr Zelensky was elected president of Ukraine in 2019, partly on a promise to root out systemic corruption. But now critics say his government is trying to undermine some of Ukraine's most important anti-corruption organizations as they pursue investigations into his administration. One of Ukraine's most prominent anti-corruption advocates and a frequent critic of the Zelensky administration, Vitalii Shabunin, was accused in a court proceeding last week of evading military service and fraud. He has denied the accusation, which his many domestic and international defenders say lacks merit. If convicted, he could face a decade in prison. On Monday, even as the country came under yet another large-scale bombardment in its grueling war with Russia, Ukrainian security agencies directed dozens of raids on Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Special Anticorruption Prosecutor, saying that Russian intelligence had infiltrated the organizations. And on Tuesday, the Ukrainian Parliament, which Mr. Zelensky's party controls, passed a law that — if signed by the president — would give Ukraine's prosecutor general, who was appointed by Mr. Zelensky, new powers over investigations by the two agencies. Activists and analysts say these developments are part of a broader crackdown on independent media, government oversight agencies and other voices critical of Mr. Zelensky's administration. And they warn that the efforts threaten to dismantle years of hard-won democratic reforms. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
