Ukraine's Navy Commander says drones can't replace ships in war
Vice Admiral Oleksii Neizhpapa, Commander of the Navy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has emphasised that it will take more than just drones to defeat Russia at sea.
Source: Neizhpapa in an interview with Ukrainska Pravda (the interview will soon be translated into English)
Quote: "We will come to the point – I am not saying this for the first time – that the war of the future is a war of drones against drones. It will be like that.
But the sea has a certain non-linearity. Therefore, to say that only these drugs (drones – ed.) are suitable for this disease, and the rest can now be thrown away – I will never say that. Yes, drones are another way to defeat the Russians. I agree with this, it works. But there is a certain limitation in the use of these means. First of all, it is the size, armament, and ability to withstand weather conditions – many things that distinguish them from a ship.
... Simply changing the fleet to drones and winning will not work. It is the same as the Ground Forces would give up tanks, infantry combat vehicles, guns and everything else.
…You can claim a territory as yours only when the boot of your soldier or a marine stands on it. Then this is your territory. The same is true at sea. When you have a ship standing in these territorial waters, and no one can do anything about it, only then it is your sea."
Details: Neizhpapa emphasised that any war is the development of military technologies and the enemy's development of assets to counter these technologies. He thinks this is the only way to understand whether something "is working or not."
In particular, the Navy Commander emphasised that some Ukrainian tricks, and tactics of application, practised in 2022 and 2023, will no longer work in 2024.
Quote: "The enemy will use drones at sea in the same way as it uses them on land. The enemy is also learning, they have a powerful industrial complex, and the Russians never scrimped money on weapons. Therefore, very difficult drone wars are ahead of us."
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