Ground Forces explain why it is out of the question to completely replace artillery with drones

Currently, in Russia's war against Ukraine, there can be no question of complete replacement of artillery with drones due to certain limitations of drones' capabilities. This was reported by the Communications Department of the Land Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in response to a request LIGA.net.

The Command stated that since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the tactics and methods of using units involved in fire have changed.

These changes are characterized by the acquisition by UAV units of a significant role in the fire damage to occupiers' personnel and equipment, as well as in long-range strikes on Russian targets.

"Nevertheless, today we cannot talk about the complete replacement of artillery with unmanned systems," the response reads.

The Land Forces clarified that this is due to certain limitations of the use of drones, such as the impact of weather conditions, the range of destruction and the specifics of tasks that can only be performed by artillery units.

• On March 4, 2025, then-Prime Minister Shmyhal said that starting this year,  Ukraine would be able to fully meet its needs for artillery .
• In April, Smetanin reported that Ukraine produces more self-propelled artillery than all the countries of the free world combined.
• At the same time, according to the Defense Ministry, Ukraine is capable of producing up to 10 million drones per year with proper funding.