Ukraine hit a turning point in its electronic-warfare capabilities, using them to take out 20 Russian missiles: ISW

• Ukraine said it had disabled 20 Russian missiles using electronic-warfare methods.
• Electronic-warfare units scrambled the navigation systems of missiles.

Ukraine hit a turning point in its electronic-warfare capabilities after disrupting 20 Russian missiles, according to experts.

Ukrainian military officials said they'd taken out the missiles using "active countermeasures by means of electronic warfare" — the first time they had foiled that many Russian missile attacks by scrambling their navigation systems.

It came during a wave of attacks on Ukraine early Saturday morning, with Russia launching 37 missiles and drones at cities across Ukraine.

The Institute for the Study of War, a US think tank that tracks the conflict, said that the announcement "may be an inflection in Ukrainian electronic-warfare capabilities that are normally credited with disabling Russian drones but not missile systems."

It noted comments by Yurii Ihnat, spokesman for the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, that the January 13 attacks resembled the January 8 attacks by Russia, meaning Ukraine is likely getting better at recognizing rapidly changing patterns in attack methods.

It said that Russia and Ukraine were engaged in a race, with Russia experimenting with different types and combinations of missile and drone attacks to find holes in air defenses, and Ukraine attempting to enhance its ability to shoot down drones and missiles.

"Russia's ongoing strike campaign against Ukraine, and Ukrainian adaptations to counter new Russian strike packages, is part of a wider tactical and technological offense-defense race between long-range strike and air defense capabilities," it said.

Electronic-warfare units use signals to interfere with the navigation systems of drones and missiles in a bid to disable them or send them off course.

Russia has long had a sophisticated electronic-warfare program and has gotten better at disabling high-tech missiles provided to Ukraine by its Western allies, such as HIMARS missiles.

But Ukraine appears to be catching up, using electronic-warfare units with increasing success in defending against intensifying Russian attacks designed to crush Ukrainian morale and disable infrastructure over winter.

Over the New Year period, Russia launched its biggest attacks on Ukraine, prompting Ukraine to request extra Western support to enhance its air defense capability.