Well into the third year of the Russian grand scale invasion of Ukraine, drones have become one of the most defining weapons of the war. They are cheap, effective and don’t ask for human sacrifice. How is the war in Ukraine shaped by drones? And what are the political implications of drone warfare?
The war in Ukraine brought the development of drones into a new gear. In early September, Ukraine deployed a new kind of drone, named ‘dragon drone’, which spreads burning thermite that scorches everything it touches. They are as terrifying as they are effective. Inevitably, the Russians now use this weapon too.
What are the political and ethical implications of these rapid developments in drone warfare? What lessons do Nato-members draw from the drone-innovations on the Ukrainian battlefield? And how will drones shape the wars of the future?
Dr Ulrike Franke is a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, based in the Paris office. Her areas of focus include German and European security and defence, the future of warfare, and the impact of new technologies such as drones and artificial intelligence on geopolitics and warfare.
Information Wars: about this series
With this three-part programme series, which is partially funded by a Public Diplomacy Grant from NATO, we want to provide in-depth analysis of current affairs and facilitate nuanced debate, thus making complex material accessible. Russian-Western relations are shaped by war, in the broadest sense of the word. What are the consequences of the hybrid forms of warfare? Such as cyber- and psychological warfare, and economic sanctions.
In order to understand the current state of affairs, the Information Wars series will focus on the larger historical, societal and cultural context of the relations between Ukraine and NATO member states on the one hand, and Russia on the other hand.
Sprekers
Programmamaker Veronica Baas gaat met balletdanser Timothy van Poucke in gesprek.
Timothy van Poucke behoort als balletdanser tot de absolute wereldtop. Hij is op dit moment de enige Nederlandse eerste solist bij het Nationale Ballet en wordt geloofd om zijn enorme charisma en zijn indrukwekkende toneelpersoonlijkheid.
In samenwerking met deBuren
Precies één jaar na de verkiezingen kijken we hoe Nederland ervoor staat.
Unravelling Kafka
Few writers have been interpreted so much, and yet remain as mysterious as Kafka. Tonight, Arnon Grunberg and Vivian Liska will discuss his life and work.
