The CIA stated that Russian recruits on the front lines survive for only 20–30 minutes
John Ratcliffe, Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, stated that Russian recruits survive an average of only 20–30 minutes after arriving on the front lines in Ukraine. According to him, one of the main reasons is the Ukrainian military’s effective use of drones equipped with artificial intelligence, which have significantly enhanced the capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the battlefield.
“Our intelligence data aligns with information from open sources: the average survival time of a Russian recruit currently arriving on the battlefield in Ukraine is estimated to be between 20 and 30 minutes,” Retcliffe noted.
He emphasized that this situation is a result of the rapid development of Ukrainian drone technology.
“AI-powered drones have become highly specialized and inexpensive killing machines,” the CIA director emphasized.
According to Bloomberg, Retcliffe’s statement came amid discussions between the United States and its allies regarding the possibility of allocating additional funding for Ukrainian drone development programs, as well as expanding Ukraine’s access to artificial intelligence technologies.
Citing Bloomberg, he made these remarks during the Defense and Innovation Summit in Pennsylvania.
As a reminder, on the night of July 16, Russian terrorists launched ballistic missile strikes on Kyiv, resulting in fires at warehouses and non-residential buildings in two districts of the capital. There are also reports of casualties and injuries.
Over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian military has eliminated 1,340 Russian occupiers. The Defense Forces also destroyed three tanks, 66 artillery systems, 1,801 tactical-level drones, and 420 enemy vehicles.
Over the past day, 279 combat engagements were recorded on the front lines. Russian troops launched one missile strike using four missiles, carried out 88 airstrikes, dropping 295 guided bombs, deployed 9,922 kamikaze drones, and carried out 3,148 shelling attacks on Defense Forces positions and populated areas, including 42 using multiple launch rocket systems.
