EXPLAINER: Killer drones vie for supremacy over Ukraine

By The Associated Press

They are precise, small in size and able to engage a target in relatively large numbers. And above all they’re cheap. Drones made by Iran and used by Russia have cemented their reputation as a potent, hard to stop and cost-effective weapon to seek out and destroy the enemy while simultaneously spreading the kind of terror that can fray the resolve of soldiers and civilians alike. Russia’s unleashing of successive waves of the Shahed drones over Ukraine has multiple goals. The drones seek to take out key targets, crush morale and ultimately drain the enemy’s war chest and arsenal trying to defend against them.