They have become a fundamental weapon in the Ukrainian war. Unmanned vehicles are playing a key role when, for example, carrying out reconnaissance missions.
Additionally, in the , drones are allowing both Russian and Ukrainian forces to carry out Remote attacks against enemy military targets precisely.
For these reasons, the arms industry of both countries has placed as one of its highest priorities technologically develop drones and increase their production level.
In that sense, Ukrainian intelligence has warned that Russia could soon get ahead in that particular ‘drone race’ thanks to cheap labor from North Korea.
Specifically, the Directorate of Military Intelligence of Ukraine (HUR) has indicated that, by the end of 2025, Moscow plans to employ “approximately 12,000 North Korean workers” in the Yelabuga Special Economic Zone, Tatarstan region.
The work that those thousands of workers arriving from North Korea to Yelabuga would do would be to help the country chaired by Vladimir Putin to increase the production of military drones.
As reported by the news website in Yelábuga It is the place where the main plant where Russia manufactures modified versions of Iran’s Shahed-136 dronewhich the Russians have named ‘Grant-2’.
In addition, in the drone factory located in the Yelabuga Special Economic Zone it is also where Moscow produces a jet-powered variant of that unmanned vehicle, the Geran-3.
Likewise, in Yelábuga the dron Gerberawhich is used by Russian forces as decoy to distract and saturate Ukrainian air defenses due to its visual resemblance to the Shahed-136 drone.
