Ukrainian Presidential Advisor: Electronic Warfare Cannot Replace Patriot Systems, Its Use in Cities Carries Great Risks
On August 7, Ukrainian presidential advisor Serhiy Beskrestnov published a post on his Telegram channel explaining the risks of deploying electronic warfare equipment in urban environments; Ukraine avoids placing electronic warfare systems inside cities to counter Russian-guided aerial bombs and ballistic missiles due to the additional dangers involved.
Beskrestnov stated he has received numerous public inquiries asking whether electronic warfare systems can be relied upon to defend against aerial attacks, prompting him to clarify several misconceptions.
"Electronic warfare does not directly cause 'Shahed' drones to crash. Its function is to interfere with drones, preventing them from locking onto or hitting targets—thus creating conditions for air defense forces to intercept them."
Beskrestnov also emphasized that electronic warfare cannot divert ballistic missiles from their targets. Even if technically possible, such interference absolutely must not be activated within cities. "It’s far better for a missile to strike an empty industrial zone at night than to be deflected by electronic warfare toward nearby residential neighborhoods."
He noted that electronic warfare can disrupt Russian-guided aerial bombs (KAB), but doing so is extremely difficult—Russia has continuously upgraded the anti-jamming capabilities of its onboard guidance systems.
"Moreover, no one dares to perform deflection interference on guided bombs heading toward urban factories. Even if the bomb is diverted from its intended target point, it won’t be destroyed—it will still land on domestic territory and cause damage."
Previously, Ukraine claimed that its new electronic warfare system, “Lima,” successfully intercepted 61 Russian Kinzhal hypersonic missiles through a combination of signal jamming, deceptive interference, and network attacks targeting navigation receivers.
The commander of the “Alchemist”-hailing “Night Watch” unit explained that most missiles were fragmented mid-air after being disrupted by this system, allowing Ukrainian forces to recover missile components for disassembly and research. Through this, Ukrainian experts have gained deep insights into Russian classified technologies while simultaneously verifying the real-world performance of domestically developed electronic warfare equipment.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1872916659112967/
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