1/ Tens of gigabytes of secret data on Russia's strategic electronic warfare systems has been hacked by the pro-Ukrainian Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK). They say that Russia's EW shield is "not just fragile - it's full of holes" due to multiple flaws and vulnerabilities. ⬇️
2/ Two weeks ago, the RDK announced that it had obtained a large quantity of data on Russia's EW systems, including technical specifications, diagrams, official correspondence, equipment setup methods, drawings, test reports, and functional information.
3/ RDK commander 'Fortuna' says that "We got more than just the external appearance. We see the internal logic, architecture, connections between nodes, we know who designed it, which companies supplied the units, which research institutes are responsible for the developments."
4/ "We received a number of important military developments along with protocols, engineering solutions and approvals from the Russian Ministry of Defence. In addition, we managed to establish the entire chain of enterprises involved in production and supply.
5/ "And it is also important that all the persons involved in the development and creation of these stations were identified. Upon completion of the operation, the RDK had their names, addresses, car numbers, places of work."
6/ RDK announced in a YouTube video that it had obtained data on the following:
🔺 "ANCHAR-K — a polar warfare naval station. An automated station for electronic suppression of satellite communication lines in Arctic conditions. It is installed on icebreaker-class ships.
7/ "Developed as a response to the vulnerability of the Russian Federation in high-latitude areas."
8/ The system is intended to disrupt signals from satellites, aviation radars and ship navigation. However, the documents obtained by the RDK indicate that it is not capable of resisting Arctic conditions, including wind, cold and icing.
9/ According to the RDK, "When the ship maneuvers, the Anchar loses tracking. The guidance time is more than four minutes. In the event of a failure, the entire system is switched off." Its location is exposed when it is in operation.
10/ 🔺 "OZON-MEI — over-the-horizon. Over-the-horizon radar project using the evaporation waveguide effect. It works by forming a plasma channel in the near-surface atmosphere."
11/🔺 "Tirada-2.3 — "Interference". Satellite communications electronic suppression station. Part of the Tirada-2S complex."
According to the RDK, this is a narrow-target system for disabling satellite communications which uses directional antennas to focus on specific targets.
12/ Operating in ranges from 225 MHz to 15 GHz, it is used to temporarily disrupt communications with US and British military satellites (WGS, MUOS, Skynet).
13/ 'Fortuna' says: "Such a complex jams communications and also generates false signals. For example, a drone flying over the Bryansk region may "think" that it is over Ethiopia. Disorientation and substitution of coordinates occur."
14/🔺 "NMS REP DDV — suppression radio brain. Ground-based mobile station for suppressing long-range satellite communications. Controls other electronic warfare systems. Suppresses FleetSatcom, Milstar, MUOS, etc. links."
15/ The RDK desribes this as a key element of Russian signal suppression technology:
“This is a radio brain, everything depends on it: it determines radiation modes, types of interference, phasing."
16/ However, they say that it has serious flaws. It is reported to be extremely sensitive to weather, vibrations, requires complex settings and a stable power supply. The system copes poorly with combat conditions.
17/🔺 "Software modules, OS, CORVETTE. Operating systems and software modules used for protection and work with electronic warfare. We understand the architecture, but will not disclose all the security details."
18/ The hacked documents also reveal that Russia exploits China's satellites, apparently without China's knowledge. "Russia uses civilian Chinese satellites to cover the calibration of its systems."
19/ "That is, Russian electronic warfare systems are posing as terminals of the PRC’s civilian fleet in the Pacific Ocean. China has not been officially notified of this. If a signal is detected, Russia is betting that the responsibility will fall on the Chinese channel.
20/ "This is a risky game. Sooner or later, China will understand this. And we already know which satellites they “hang on to,” which channels they mimic. This is an extremely interesting and unexpected observation."
21/ 'Fortuna' says that Russian strategic electronic warfare systems suffer from the lack of an operational ecosystem. "This is a huge, overloaded structure, not ready for a real war."
22/ Russia has invested heavily in its EW systems to compensate for its relative lack of satellites, compared to the United States or China. The leak is likely to be a considerable setback, as it will enable Ukraine's Western partners to develop countermeasures. /end
1/ Russia's ongoing budget crisis, caused by the war in Ukraine, has caused government funding of science to fall to its lowest level since the chaotic mid-1990s. Meanwhile, ordinary Russians are increasingly investing in magic amulets and aspen stakes to drive away vampires. ⬇️
2/ The National Research University's Higher School of Economics (HSE) has published its annual 'Science Indicators' yearbook. It shows that domestic expenditure on research and development in Russia has fallen to 0.97% of GDP, its lowest level since 1996.
3/ This is lower than the R&D funding levels of Malaysia (1.01% of GDP), Egypt (1.03%), and Lithuania (1.05%). It is also far lower than the levels of Israel, which ranks first in the world in terms of R&D funding (6.35% of GDP), South Korea (4.96%), and Taiwan (3.97%).
1/ A very interesting interview with Donbas separatist Pavel Gubarev is being interpreted by Russian warbloggers as a move by 'angry patriots' to lay the ground for a coup in Russia. They see a potential replay of the 1918 overthrow of Tsar Nicholas II. ⬇️
2/ The interview is notable not only for its revealing admissions about Russia's seizure of the Donbas in 2014, which Russian nationalists refer to as 'the Russian Spring', but for its choice of venue.
3/ Yuri Dud, to whom Gubarev spoke, is a German-born Russian journalist and YouTuber who now lives in exile. He has been labelled a 'foreign agent' by the Russian government and was sentenced in absentia to 23 months' imprisonment in November 2025.
1/ Russia is proclaiming success in its ongoing recruitment drive, but this is being achieved by scraping the bottom of the barrel. A newly-published video shows the abysmal quality of the current recruits: old, disabled, and homeless men, with only two fingers between them. ⬇️
2/ The video shows three newly recruited men in Omsk. Despite having severe physical disabilities, all three are recognised as medically fit for military service at a selection point called Sirius. They have signed a contract and will be sent to Ukraine.
3/ It was filmed at an office of the 1442nd Motorized Rifle Regiment (military unit 95383) of the 6th Motorized Rifle Division (military unit 77860) of the 3rd Army Corps (military unit 41794).
1/ The Iranian Republican Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy has published a map showing the 'new' shipping lanes for vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz. However, what it shows greatly increases the risk of future shipping disasters in the Persian Gulf. ⬇️
2/ The Strait of Hormuz is only 33–39 km (20-24 mi) wide at its narrowest point, but its usable width is far narrower. The shipping lanes in the middle of the Strait pass through a 9 km-wide (5 mi) stretch of the deepest water, comprising two 3 km wide lanes with a 3 km gap.
3/ Iran is currently diverting ships around Larak island to the north of the existing shipping lanes, through the so-called 'Tehran Tollbooth'. However, this has a major problem: the water between Larak and Qeshm is only 20 m deep, far too shallow for fully loaded oil tankers.
1/ This continues Russian drone developer Alexey Chadayev's analysis of the state of Russia's drone warfare; see the links below for parts 1 and 2. In this part, he assesses the crucial role of communications systems in drone control. ⬇️
1/ This continues Russian drone developer Alexey Chadayev's analysis of the state of Russia's drone warfare; see the link below for part 1. In this part, he assesses problems with unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) which have become acute since Russia lost access to Starlink. ⬇️
There's an interesting picture here: the enemy is increasing their use, while we're decreasing it. And it's not because we're physically short of them—they're sitting in warehouses by the thousands.