British intelligence concludes Russia began to use its own Geran kamikaze drones in Ukraine.

Echoed by topwar.ru, British intelligence reports that Russia, with a high degree of probability, began to use its own production of one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicles (OWA-UAV) in Ukraine. The Russian industry has managed to localize the production of kamikaze drones based on Iranian technology.
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The Russian kamikaze drone, named "Geran-2," shares broad similarities with the Iranian Shahed-136, while boasting a simpler manufacturing process and integration compatibility with other Russian drones (Picture source: topwar.ru)

As per assessments by British intelligence analysts, Russia is actively pursuing the development of indigenous drone production and is expected to achieve this goal in the near future. However, the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defense has indicated that Russia's defense industry still relies on components sourced from Iran, transported through the Caspian Sea.

In alignment with these findings, the British Ministry of Defense has validated the observations made by Conflict Armament Research, a British organization specializing in monitoring the flow of conventional weaponry, ammunition, and related military resources to conflict zones. This organization had previously investigated the remnants of several kamikaze drones employed in Ukraine and concluded that these drones were not of Iranian origin, but indeed Russian-made Geranis.

The Russian kamikaze drone, named "Geran-2," shares broad similarities with the Iranian Shahed-136, while boasting a simpler manufacturing process and integration compatibility with other Russian drones. The design of the Russian UAV leverages pre-existing materials, components, and mechanisms used in other Russian unmanned aerial vehicles. Additionally, foreign-manufactured parts were identified, primarily originating from the United States and Switzerland.

Concurrently, Russia has initiated an expansion in the production of various drone models. As projected by analysts in the Western sphere, by the beginning of 2024, the production disparity of UAVs between Ukraine and Russia is estimated to reach a ratio of 1 to 10, implying that for every Ukrainian drone, there will be ten Russian drones manufactured. This gap is anticipated to widen even further in subsequent periods.

Defense News August 2023