Over 100 occupiers surrendered this winter thanks to UAV-operating units

This winter, over 100 russian occupiers surrendered thanks to the actions of UAV-operating units of Ukraine’s Defence Forces. 

This was announced by Ukraine's Minister of Defence, Mykhailo Fedorov. 

“Each such prisoner is another opportunity to bring our defenders home,” he emphasized. 

The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine highlights the most notable cases of occupiers being taken prisoner with the help of UAVs.

How russian occupiers surrender with the help of Ukrainian UAVs 

December 2025. Drone operators from the “Phoenix” unit of the “Volia” Battalion spotted a house with signs in its windows asking to be taken prisoner. A UAV operator then relayed instructions on how to surrender and what to do next. Service members from the “Shkval” special unit of the 57th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade later joined the operation and detained the russian soldier. 

January 2026. An FPV drone operated by the “Rubizh” Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine detected a dugout where four occupiers were hiding. The russians chose to save their lives and began coming out, following instructions from Ukrainian service members broadcast through a loudspeaker mounted on the drone. Despite attempts by the enemy to eliminate their own soldiers, all four russians were captured alive. 

February 2026. In the North Slobozhanskyi sector, service members of the 158th Separate Mechanized Brigade captured five russian occupiers using a drone and a loudspeaker. 

In the same month, two occupiers were walking to surrender under the escort of a drone from the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo. russian forces struck them with a drone, killing one of the occupiers. The other managed to reach Ukrainian positions and was taken prisoner. 

To recap, this winter the Defence Forces eliminated 92,475 russian troops. Of these, 88,898 occupiers were eliminated by drones, while the rest were confirmed through video evidence of artillery strikes.