Ukraine May Have Achieved Its First-Ever Tank Advantage Over Russia

Ukrainian forces may have achieved tank superiority over the Russian army for the first time since the start of the full-scale war with the help of drones.

However, this advantage appears to be limited to specific sections of the extensive 1,200-kilometer (800-mile) front line. The claim was reported by Forbes on January 12, citing a Russian blogger.

According to the blogger, in any area along the front where Ukrainians have deployed two company-sized drone groups, each comprising a few dozen operators, Russian tanks “simply don’t reach the line for launching an attack.” Instead, they are taken out by drones miles behind the contact line.

“The enemy has achieved sufficient scale and variety in its drones and has honed its tactics for their use,” the Russian blogger said.

Ukrainian tanks can advance directly to the contact line, engaging Russian forces with cannons and machine guns, the blogger noted. While Russia relies on its ample stock of shoulder-fired anti-tank missiles, Ukrainian tanks benefit from safer airspace due to effective radio jamming.

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War in Ukraine

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The blogger attributed Russia's weaker drone operations to poor quality control and corruption among Russian officials.

An exception to this reported shift is in Russia’s Kursk region, where the Kremlin has equipped its regiments and brigades with advanced fiber-optic drones, which use cable-based signals that are immune to traditional jamming methods.

Kyrylo Budanov, Chief of Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate, previously identified the growing deployment of electronic warfare-resistant fiber-optic FPV drones as one of the country's most critical challenges for 2025.

Unlike traditional drones that depend on radio frequencies susceptible to jamming, fiber-optic drones are resistant to electronic warfare tactics, offering a significant operational edge.

On January 11, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized the goal of making the upcoming year a record-breaking period for developing and deploying drones and other critical military technologies.