Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valeriy Zaluzhny outlined the five main priorities that Ukraine needs to defeat the Russian Federation.

"Basic weapons, such as missiles and shells, remain essential. But Ukraine's armed forces need key military capabilities and technologies to break out of this kind of war. The most important one is air power. Control of the skies is essential to large-scale ground operations," Zaluzhny wrote in an essay for The Economist.

He noted that at the beginning of the war, Ukraine had 120 combat aircraft, of which only a third could be used. At the same time, the Russian Air Force, as Zaluzhny emphasized, suffered huge losses, and Ukrainian forces destroyed more than 550 enemy air defense systems, but the Russian Federation maintains a significant advantage and continues to create new attack squadrons.

"That advantage has made it harder for us to advance. Russia's air-defence systems increasingly prevent our planes from flying. Our defences do the same to Russia. So Russian drones have taken over a large part of the role of manned aviation in terms of reconnaissance and air strikes," the general explained.

Zaluzhny noted that drones should also be part of the response to the actions of the Russian Federation. Thus, Ukraine needs to launch massive strikes using decoys and attack drones in order to overload Russian air defense systems.

The second priority for the Defense Forces is electronic warfare (EW) capabilities, such as jamming communications and navigation signals.

"EW is the key to victory in the drone war. Russia modernised its EW forces over the past decade, creating a new branch of its army and building 60 new types of equipment. It outdoes us in this area: 65% of our jamming platforms at the start of the war were produced in Soviet times," the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said.

According to him, Ukraine has already created many of its own electronic protection systems that can prevent jamming, but it also needs greater access to electronic intelligence from Ukrainian allies.

The third task, as Zaluzhny pointed out, is counter-battery fire: defeating enemy artillery. In this war, as in most past wars, artillery and rocket fire accounts for 60-80% of all combat missions, the general added.

"When we first received Western guns last year, we were quite successful at locating and striking Russian artillery. But the effectiveness of weapons such as Excalibur, a gps-guided American shell, has declined dramatically owing to improved Russian electronic warfare," he explained.

According to Zaluzhny, meanwhile, Russia's own counter-battery fire has improved. This is largely thanks to its use of Lancet loitering munitions, which work alongside reconnaissance drones, and its increasing production of precision-guided shells that can be aimed by ground spotters. He noted that Ukraine has currently managed to achieve parity with the Russian Federation due to fewer and more accurate firepower, but this may not last long.

"We need to build up our local gps fields - using ground-based antennas rather than just satellites - to make our precision-guided shells more accurate in the face of Russian jamming. We need to make greater use of kamikaze drones to strike Russian artillery. And we need our partners to send us better artillery-reconnaissance equipment that can locate Russian guns," Zaluzhny said.

The fourth task, as the general noted, is technology for mine clearance. Even Western supplies, such as Norwegian mine-clearing tanks, have proven insufficient given the scale of Russian minefields, which stretch 20 kilometers in places, he said.

"Technology is the answer," Zaluzhny said.

He named the build-up of Ukrainian reserves as the fifth priority. Zaluzhny noted that Ukraine's ability to prepare reserves on its territory is limited, and there are also problems in the legislation that allow citizens to evade their responsibilities.

"We are introducing a unified register of draftees, and we must expand the category of citizens who can be called up for training or mobilisation. We are also introducing a 'combat internship,' which involves placing newly mobilised and trained personnel in experienced front-line units to prepare them," the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said.

Summing up, he emphasized that Russia should not be underestimated, because although the enemy suffered heavy losses and used up a lot of ammunition, the Russian Federation will have superiority in weapons, equipment, missiles and ammunition for a considerable time.