| | | We be very fortunate to have Ukraine as a western ally and partner
On May 2, 2025, Ukraine altered the history of modern warfare. A Russian Su-30 fighter jet, an advanced and costly piece of Moscow’s arsenal, was destroyed by a naval drone operated remotely by Ukrainian forces. This was not a strike of overwhelming force. It was the result of engineering and adaptation by a people who hold these qualities as central to their culture. Even in the darkest days of USSR occupation, Ukraine was the brainpower of Moscow’s “prison of nations,” responsible for the technology and innovation that kept the Kremlin from sinking into its natural ninth-century state.
Yesterday’s event underscored a deeper truth: Ukraine has always been the intellectual core of Eastern European innovation. For decades under Soviet rule, it was Ukrainian minds that built the missiles, designed the aircraft, and solved the complex challenges of empire. Today, those same capabilities—freed from the constraints of ideology—are reshaping the battlefield.
Ukrainian brain power kept the USSR from being a 9th-century backwater
The Soviet Union projected the image of a vast and singular power. In reality, it depended disproportionately on Ukraine for its most sophisticated military and technological development.
In Kyiv, the Antonov Design Bureau produced the most ambitious aircraft in the Soviet bloc. Its engineers built the An-124 Ruslan and the An-225 Mriya, marvels of aviation unmatched in size and payload capacity. These were not products of Russian genius—they were conceived and constructed in Ukraine.
In Dnipro, the Yuzhmash plant was the beating heart of Soviet rocketry. The missiles that defined the Cold War, from ICBMs to launch vehicles, came from this city. These factories also helped carry Soviet ambitions into space. Few sites in the USSR carried more strategic weight.
In Kharkiv and Lviv, universities, design institutes, and heavy manufacturing facilities trained the specialists who filled Soviet military laboratories and production lines. From tank engines to radar systems, much of what gave the USSR its edge originated in these cities. Moscow gave the orders; Ukraine wrote the instructions.
This technical legacy was no accident. It was the result of a population steeped in science, education, and engineering culture. For years, the Soviet regime extracted value from that inheritance. Today, Russia faces it across the battlefield.
</snip> Full article here: kyivinsider.com
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