Lined up, guitar in hand in front of the bulletproof vest, six Ukrainian soldiers loudly sing the verse of the new popular song: "The only thing we need... Bayraktar!"
Throughout the country, the name of this Turkish combat drone has become a symbol of resistance against the Russian invader.
Since the beginning of the conflict, the "TB2" has allowed the Ukrainian army to destroy many enemy tanks.
"It's a weapon that has a certain tactical success", develops Jean-Marc Rickli, director of global and emerging risks at the Geneva Center for Security Policy.
With his camera, "he can identify targets" and destroy them with "his four laser-guided bombs".
At less than two million dollars, the Bayraktar is a "cheap" military option for Ukraine compared to fighter jets.
Used in the Donbass war since 2019, it can fly for more than a day straight, within a radius of 150 kilometers and hit its target day or night.
Facing Russia, the machine proved to be particularly effective "to fight against the columns of tanks in the suburbs of kyiv", explains Jean-Marc Rickli.
"By striking vertically at the level of the turret, the TB2 makes it possible to destroy the machines by bypassing the shielding on the sides".
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If “the second phase of the war seems to be focused on Donbass”, the Ukrainians could now turn to “kamikaze drones supplied by the Americans”.
Propelled by a launcher that looks like a mortar fixed to the ground, the "Switchblades" spread their wings to go towards their target and detonate their charge.
For Jean-Marc Rickli, "swarms of drones" will shape the future of combat.
Faced with a hundred of these flying weapons, air defense systems will find it very difficult to protect the ground.
“The following question will then arise: to what extent do human beings still control the decision of life or death?
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