This is the moment a Ukrainian soldier blows up a Russian firing position with a “kamikaze drone” as if he is playing a PlayStation game.
The footage opens with bursts of machine gun fire coming from the Russian position.
It then cuts to a Ukrainian soldier wearing a headset operating a console inside what looks like a trench.
A camera on the drone itself shows the UAV hurtling towards its target.
The footage then cuts to the Russian position going up in flames and smoke following the precision hit.
The images were obtained today (16th June) from the Donetsk Separate Brigade of the Territorial Defence Forces.
The Territorial Defence Forces are the military reserve component of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The brigade wrote: “Another one of our drone kamikaze operations targeted enemy positions. The enemy’s shelter and machine gun crew were destroyed.
“The Pokrovsky Battalion of our brigade was involved in the operation. It is no coincidence that the brigade’s command carefully implemented the use of kamikaze drones.
“Accuracy, speed, effectiveness. We continue to work in defence of Ukraine, eliminating the enemy.”
The Donetsk Separate Brigade did not specify where the strike took place.
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24th February 2022 in what the Kremlin is still calling a “special military operation”. Today marks the 478th day of the full-scale war.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between 24th February 2022 and 15th June 2023, Russia had lost about 218,500 personnel, 3,965 tanks, 7,683 armoured combat vehicles, 3,812 artillery units, 606 multiple launch rocket systems, 364 air defence systems, 314 warplanes, 301 helicopters, 3,357 drones, 1,199 cruise missiles, 18 warships, 6,519 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 519 units of special equipment.
Russia has claimed that its casualties have been much lower but provides infrequent updates on its latest figures.
Ukrainian General Staff spokesman Oleksandr Shtupun has reported that Ukrainian forces conducted successful operations north and north-west of Bakhmut, with more than 30 clashes taking place on 15th June.
Ukrainian Ground Forces commander Oleksandr Syrskyi has said that Russia is continuing to move its most capable units towards Bakhmut and is conducting air strikes on Ukrainian positions.
According to Syrskyi, Ukrainian troops are continuing to carry out offensives in order to gradually displace the Russian army from in and around the city.
According to the Deputy Chief of Ukraine’s General Staff, Oleksii Hromov, there are no signs of Russia preparing for another large-scale mobilisation.
Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said on 14th June that the Ukrainian army is suffering fewer losses than Russia, “despite the fake news spread by the Russians suggesting otherwise”.
According to a statement from Ukraine’s National Resistance Centre, 150 children have been illegally taken from Luhansk Oblast to Prikubansky District, southern Russia.
At least 19,393 children are known to have been illegally taken to Russia since the start of the invasion.
