Enemy increased number of drone attacks on Ukraine by more than 100 times compared to beginning of war – National Police chief
Since the beginning of the war, the enemy has carried out more than 100,000 drone attacks on Ukraine: throughout 2022, 221 UAV attacks were recorded, while in just the first four months of 2026 the number of enemy drone strikes reached 21,000, Head of the National Police of Ukraine Ivan Vyhivsky said.
"We are forced to state that high technologies associated with progress are in this war turning into an instrument of targeted terror against the civilian population. Drones are aimed at residential neighborhoods, critical infrastructure facilities, schools and vehicles," the National Police chief said at the international conference "United for Justice. Accountability for Crimes against Civilians" in Kyiv.
He noted that such actions by the enemy are a gross violation of humanitarian law and bear signs of war crimes.
"The figures demonstrate a clear trend toward escalation. Since the beginning of martial law, the National Police have recorded about 101,000 incidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles on the territory of our state," Vyhivsky said.
According to him, what is indicative is not the overall volume, but the dynamics: "In 2022, 221 such attacks were recorded, in 2023 – 13 times more, nearly 2,800, and in 2024 the number of drone attacks compared to 2022 increased 100-fold to 21,000."
In 2025, according to the National Police chief, the enemy changed the nature of the attacks and used missile weapons less frequently, while the lion’s share of shelling was carried out using drones equipped with remote munition release systems and fiber-optic FPV drones.
"As a result, the number of drone attacks in 2025 increased to nearly 56,000. And in just four months of this year, we have already documented nearly 21,000 drone attacks," he stressed.