Why small guns have been critical to layered CUAS architectures
Multiple countries have been deploying small arms as the last line of drone defence due to their multiple operational and tactical advantages.
Arms transferred from Russia to rebel-held east Ukraine: watchdog
An independent watchdog on Thursday told AFP it had seen weapons being transported from Russia to rebel-held areas of eastern Ukraine over the last week, contradicting Moscow's claim it is not arming separatists.
The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe said it had observed convoys of cargo trucks moving across the border under the cover of night.
A drone captured footage of 'vehicles, including a truck carrying an armoured personnel carrier, entering and exiting Ukraine' using an unpaved route with no border crossing facilities, it said.
The OSCE has previously complained of its drones being jammed.
On two other occasions it had seen weapons convoys moving near, but not crossing, the border.
In response to the new reports, the United States urged the Kremlin to 'stop providing deadly weapons under cover of night to its proxies in eastern Ukraine.'
'Only Russia can bring an end to bloodshed in Ukraine,' the US embassy in Ukraine said last week, after the OSCE announced it observed the first of the convoys.
More than 10,000 people have been killed since the conflict with Moscow-backed rebels broke out in April 2014 following Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.
Ukraine and its Western allies accuse Russia of funnelling troops and arms across the border.
Moscow has denied the allegations despite overwhelming evidence that it has been involved in the fighting.
The OSCE team's 600 members are the only independent monitoring mission in the war-torn area who provide daily reports on the fighting.
You may also like
More from Defence Notes
-
![Why small guns have been critical to layered CUAS architectures]()
-
![Singapore Airshow 2026: ST Engineering hints at export success for AME assault rifle family]()
Singapore Airshow 2026: ST Engineering hints at export success for AME assault rifle family
The Singapore-based technology company unveiled its new rifle family at this week’s airshow. Chen Chuanren spoke with the ST Engineering’s head of small arms to find out more about how the weapons have been refined.
-
![High tension in the High North – a wake-up call for NATO’s future Arctic defence efforts?]()
High tension in the High North – a wake-up call for NATO’s future Arctic defence efforts?
Any potential ‘Arctic Sentry’ mission would be months in the planning, but with tensions high in the region given the US’s push for Greenland, NATO countries will need to continue to emphasise their commitment to the region, analysts have said.
-
![Venezuela prepares personnel and equipment for a potential second US attack]()
Venezuela prepares personnel and equipment for a potential second US attack
Defence Minister Gen Vladimir Padrino López has declared that the Venezuelan armed forces “will continue to employ all its available capabilities for military defence”.
-
![As the new year starts, the UK defence spending delay continues]()
As the new year starts, the UK defence spending delay continues
The UK’s defence spending commitments remain uncertain as the government’s Defence Investment Plan, which had been due by the end of 2025, is yet to be published.
-
![How might European countries look to tackle drone incursions?]()
How might European countries look to tackle drone incursions?
Disruption of infrastructure in Europe, whether by cyberattack, physical damage to pipelines or uncrewed aerial vehicles flying over major airports, as has happened more recently, is on the rise. What is the most effective way of countering the aerial aspect of this not-so-open warfare?
