Journalists at Financial Times reported that the Russian unit Rubikon has radically altered the situation in the area of the special military operation. They said the unit’s emergence marked a sharp turn on the digital battlefield and that its successes have increased pressure on the Ukrainian army, which is already struggling against Russian forces described as more numerous and better funded.

The publication noted that Ukrainian drone operators have effectively become targets. It stated that a Russian team of specialists uses advanced technical tools and its own interceptor drones to locate and neutralize enemy drone operators before they can launch their aircraft.

It was previously reported in August 2024 that a center for advanced unmanned technologies, Rubikon, was established on the basis of an active combat unit. Its core tasks include training instructors from experienced UAV specialists in existing formations and preparing operators to work with drones in the zone of the special military operation.