This week on Hafta, Newslaundry’s Jayashree Arunachalam, Shardool Katyayan and Raman Kirpal are joined by Aditya Ramanathan, geopolitical expert research analyst at The Takshashila Institution.

Discussing Ukraine’s covert drone attack on Russian airbases, Aditya explains, “It’s quite an impressive feat…you needed a secure communication network. Apparently, they used Russia’s own cellular network using encrypted link across it.”

On the effectiveness of the strike, Aditya adds, “The Ukrainians claim they knocked out something like 40 aircraft. That seems to be an exaggeration…The figures we’re seeing are closer to 10 destroyed aircraft and maybe another 10 damaged.

Jayashree reflects on the implications of new technologies in warfare: “When I was reading about this, it sounded like one of those modern-day spy thrillers…drones and open-source AI that once seemed like hobbyist stuff are now fully weaponised.”

Raman connects this to India’s own vulnerability: “Indians finally admitted that some of the jets were destroyed, but it remains a mystery because we don’t know how they have been destroyed.”

Shardool digs into the strategic impact: “These drones cost like $500 to $600… but they’ve done immense damage. Twenty aircraft damaged means billions of dollars lost. This changes warfare completely.”

On Russia’s next move, Aditya says, “Putin will want to extract some highly visible price from the Ukrainians… maybe through a spectacular attack.” But he adds, “If I was Russian, I’d actually try to negotiate. What’s on offer from the Americans is not just a ceasefire… but rehabilitation.”

The conversation ends with a critique of how defense journalism is evolving. Jayashree says, “Every Indian media house wants a geopolitics editor… but I often wonder if they actually know what they’re doing.” Aditya closes, “India’s national interest would be better served if we were a little less deferential to authority.”

This and a lot more. Tune in!

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