Putin appoints new drone forces head

BRUSSELS/MOSCOW/KYIV — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday named Denis Lyamin to head Russia's Unmanned Systems Forces, a newly established branch of the military that will be responsible for drone warfare.

Putin announced the appointment as part of a refinement of the military structure midway through the fifth year of the conflict with Ukraine. Drones have come to dominate the conflict, with each side deploying them not only along the front line but also for attacks at sea and on targets deep behind lines such as energy infrastructure and commercial warehouses.

Meanwhile, the European Union will use 1.4 billion euros ($1.6 billion) taken from interest generated by frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine, the European Commission said on Wednesday.

The money, transferred to the bloc on Monday, came from interest on cash balances, part of Russian central bank assets frozen by the EU in the wake of Russia's military operation in Ukraine, the commission said.

So far there is no response from the Kremlin.

Strikes continue

The latest developments come as Russia and Ukraine continue to trade strikes on the battlefield.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian missile and drone strikes on Kyiv and the surrounding region killed 17 people and wounded 44 others overnight into Wednesday.

In Russia's Tula Oblast, an overnight Ukrainian drone attack damaged industrial facilities and injured one person, Governor Dmitry Milyaev said on Wednesday. Two apartment buildings were also damaged in the attack. No fatalities were reported.

In another development, the director of a drone factory was badly wounded on Wednesday when his car exploded, the state-owned TASS news agency reported.

The news agency said that Vladimir Tkachuk was hospitalized in grave condition following the explosion. It didn't immediately give details of the explosion or say who could be responsible.

Tkachuk is head of drone manufacturer Uraldronzavod. Uraldronzavod is known for producing the "Upyr" family of first-person-view drones.

AGENCIES-XINHUA