- Category
- Latest news
Forget EW Systems—Russian Clergy Claim Church Bells Can Disable Drones
- Authors
![Photo of Vlad Litnarovych]( "Photo of Vlad Litnarovych")
A Russian Orthodox priest claimed that traditional church bells can interfere with Ukrainian drones, offering what he says is a spiritual and acoustic countermeasure against modern warfare. Archpriest Artemy Vladimirov told parishioners during a service at the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity on Shabolovka Street in Moscow, according to Russian media Baza on July 28.
Vladimirov told parishioners that the sound of bells can effectively “jam” drones that operate using “fiberglass “-based systems.
“The bell ringing disrupts the control systems of drones, especially those relying on ‘fiber’-optic communication,” Vladimirov said, concluding the liturgy with a special peal intended to demonstrate the effect.
While the claim lacks any scientific validation, it has sparked both ridicule and intrigue online. Social media users mocked the statement, with some joking that “scientists wasted time inventing electronic warfare systems when they could’ve just used bells.”
Still, others took a more skeptical stance, dismissing the idea as unscientific and emblematic of a broader trend in Russian wartime propaganda.
Unconventional approaches to drone defense aren’t entirely new in Russia. In a previous incident, a priest from the Kursk diocese, Igor Vasyukov, reportedly shot down two Ukrainian drones using a hunting rifle, Russian media reports.
There is currently no official directive from the Russian Orthodox Church mandating or recommending the use of bell ringing as a defense mechanism.
However, if such methods gain support—or symbolic value—some churches in border regions might adopt them as a form of spiritual resistance or morale-boosting ritual.
Earlier, a senior cleric in the Russian Orthodox Church claimed that blessing ballistic missiles is permissible if they serve the interests of the people.
