Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky [Getty Images]
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky [Getty Images]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Tuesday (local time) that "Russian airspace is no longer safe at all."

Speaking that day, Zelensky said airlines using Russian airspace, as well as insurers and travelers passing through major Russian airports, should take heed. "You have to take into account that drones will appear en masse in Russian skies," he said. "Russian airspace will in effect be closed."

Zelensky added, however, that "Ukraine is not directly threatening civilian aircraft" and that "Ukraine does not want innocent lives to be lost."

"The war Russia started is now closing their own skies," he said. "The first missiles and drones came from Russia. They crossed our borders through Russian airspace. This escalation cannot be confined to Ukrainian territory."

He also said the era of safe Russian airspace was over, and that ambassadors stationed in Russia and airlines flying to major Russian cities such as Moscow and St. Petersburg should be aware of this.

The remarks, which suggest Ukrainian forces are preparing a drone-led offensive against Russia, have drawn analysis that Zelensky may also be trying to pressure Moscow back to the peace negotiations table.

Russia deploys next-generation jet-propelled drones

Amid these developments, Russia has also been raising pressure on Ukraine by deploying next-generation jet-propelled drones.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Russia has been intensifying attacks on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv by combining jet-propelled drones with new tactics.

Russia's current workhorse is a jet-propelled drone known as the "Geran," an upgraded version of Iran's Shahed model.

The new model replaces the conventional propeller drive with a jet engine.

It reaches speeds of up to 300 miles per hour (about 482 kilometers per hour) — roughly three times faster than older models — and delivers higher strike accuracy.

Zelensky has also said that 800 of the 1,500 long-range drones Russia fired at Ukraine over the four days from Aug. 27 were the new model.

Ukraine's interception rate for older propeller-driven drones stands at nearly 90 percent, but the rate for the new drones falls short of that. Ukraine is working intensively on developing upgraded drones to push its interception rate for the new models above 90 percent.


yul@heraldcorp.com