KYIV: A wave of massive Russian aerial attacks has stretched Ukraine\u2019s air defenses, raising fears about Kyiv\u2019s reliance on Western systems to protect its skies in the fourth year of Russia\u2019s invasion.
\nAs the two sides open peace talks and Kyiv pushes for an immediate ceasefire, Moscow has launched its heaviest air assaults of the war, pummelling Ukraine with more than 900 drones and 90 missiles in a three-day barrage last weekend.
\nUkraine downed over 80 percent of the incoming projectiles, but more than a dozen people were killed.
\nExperts worry how long the country can fend off the nightly attacks if Russia maintains \u2014 or escalates \u2014 its strikes.
\n\u201cUkraine\u2019s air defenses are stretched thin and cannot guarantee protection for all cities against persistent and sophisticated Russian attacks,\u201d military analyst Franz-Stefan Gady told AFP.
\nRussia\u2019s drone and missile attacks have become more complex \u2014 and harder to thwart \u2014 throughout the war.
\nKyiv\u2019s air force says around 40 percent of drones launched recently are decoys \u2014 cheaper dummy craft that mimic attack drones and are designed to exhaust and confuse air defenses.
\nRussia increasingly sets drones to fly at a higher altitude \u2014 above 2,000 meters (6,500 feet) \u2014 and then dive down onto targets.
\n\u201cAt that altitude, they\u2019re more visible to our radars but unreachable for small arms, heavy machine guns and mobile fire teams,\u201d air force spokesman Yuriy Ignat told RBK Ukraine.
\nIn addressing the threat, Ukraine is trying to strike a balance between pressing the West to deliver new systems and not wanting to concern a war-weary public at home.
\n\u201cThere\u2019s no need to panic,\u201d a Ukraine military source told AFP.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re using all air defense systems that are available in Ukraine now, plus helicopters and aircraft. We are fighting somehow,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n
Moscow has the capacity to fire 300 to 500 drones a day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this week.
\n\u201cBy scaling up the use of Shaheds, they are forcing us to resort to expensive options,\u201d military analyst Sergiy Zgurets said, referring to the Iranian-designed drones that are packed with explosives to detonate as they crash into buildings.
\n\u201cThis is a war of attrition that must be based on economic grounds \u2014 we must shoot down Shaheds with less sophisticated alternatives,\u201d he said.
\nUkraine uses several tools to protect its skies \u2014 from advanced Western fighter jets and air defense batteries like the US-made Patriot anti-missile system, to small mobile air defense teams armed with guns.
\nNew technology has also become vital, such as the electronic jamming of drones to make them drop from the sky.
\nIncreasingly, interceptors are being deployed \u2014 smaller, cheaper drones that take on enemy drones mid-air.
\n\u201cWe are already using them. The question now is when we will be able to scale up,\u201d Zelensky said of the interceptors.
\nHe too sees the issue as one of economics.
\n\u201cThe question is no longer about production capacity\u2026 It is a financial issue,\u201d he told journalists.<\/p>\n
Beyond drones, Russia is also deploying super-fast ballistic missiles, which are much more difficult to intercept.
\n\u201cThe biggest vulnerability lies in defending against ballistic missiles,\u201d said analyst Gady.
\nA midday strike last month on the northeastern city of Sumy killed at least 35 people, while a hit near a children\u2019s playground in Zelensky\u2019s home city of Kryvyi Rig left 19 dead, including nine children.
\nTo fend off ballistic missile attacks, Ukraine relies on a small number of Patriot systems.
\nThey are concentrated around Kyiv, leaving other areas more exposed than the relatively better-protected capital.
\nGady said the current supply of missiles for them is \u201csufficient\u201d given the level of Russian strikes at the moment.
\n\u201cBut it is generally insufficient when compared to Russian ballistic missile production.\u201d
\nUkraine also faces potential shortages given delays in US output, according to Zgurets, creating \u201cgaps\u201d in Ukraine\u2019s \u201cfight against enemy hypersonic targets and ballistics.\u201d
\nDeliveries of other key Western systems are expected over the next 18 months, but uncertainty is high given President Donald Trump\u2019s criticism of aid for Ukraine.
\nUS packages approved under predecessor Joe Biden are trickling in, but Trump has not announced any fresh support.
\n\u201cDelivering air defense systems to us means real protection for people \u2014 here and now,\u201d Zelensky said in a recent call for Western backing.
\nOn a visit to Berlin on Wednesday, he said: \u201cDefending our cities requires constant support with air defense systems.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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