Putin Issues New Directive: Teaching Russians to Shoot Down Drones with Firearms
The latest decree from Vladimir Putin has sent shockwaves through military circles and civilian populations alike, as the Russian leader instructed the Ministry of Defense to develop a specialized training course aimed at empowering civilians and soldiers to effectively shoot down drones using simple firearms—shotguns.
This controversial measure raises questions about potential escalation of the conflict and the feasibility of deploying such tactics in combat scenarios.
According to sources, the training program will include instructions on handling various types of shotguns: semi-automatic, pump-action, single-barrel, double- and triple-barrel models, as well as weapons with interchangeable barrels.
Additionally, Putin ordered measures to be taken by October 1 to accelerate the supply of camouflage nets to frontline units and considered equipping military vehicles with defense systems for evacuating the wounded and protecting against drone attacks.
An equally significant decision was to authorize doctors to travel to hospitals at the front without signing military service contracts.
In this context, it is important to note that drones continue daily attacks on strategic targets such as defense industry enterprises, microelectronics facilities, radio-electronic equipment plants, and oil refineries, all critical for Russia’s military infrastructure.
On the night of August 21, Ukrainian forces struck the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in the Rostov region, causing substantial damage to vital sectors of Russia’s strategic infrastructure.