Russia Develops Covert Drone Bases Capable of Reaching NATO Territories

A report by the British newspaper The Telegraph uncovered on Monday that Russia has established at least 10 clandestine bases equipped with launch platforms for its most advanced long-range suicide drones. These installations are strategically positioned along Russia's borders with Belarus and Ukraine, offering the capability to target NATO territories.

The investigation, grounded in leaked documents and satellite imagery, reveals that analysts pinpointed a minimum of 59 new launch ramps—mechanical guide rails for fixed-wing drone takeoffs—spread across these border areas. Open-source tracking data indicates that seven out of these ten sites have already been utilized in recent attacks against Kyiv.

What makes these bases a direct threat to the Atlantic alliance is the reach of Russia's new drone models. Moscow has swiftly upgraded its version of the Iranian Shahed drone, developing the Geran-4 and Geran-5 variants. These are capable of hitting targets nearly 1,000 kilometers away and flying at speeds that can evade air defense systems, according to leaked Ukrainian government documents. Each drone can carry a payload of 90 kilograms.

With such a range, drones launched from these identified bases could reach Warsaw, the capital of Poland. Approximately 20 of the newly installed ramps are of extended length, indicating their capability to launch these long-range models. At least one base can store more than 1,000 drones simultaneously.

The Ukrainian military intelligence agency GUR has also warned that Russia is equipping the Geran drones with air-to-air missiles to target aircraft defending Kyiv, marking a qualitative leap in the use of these autonomous systems.

Mike Monnik, CEO and founder of DroneSec, a drone intelligence firm that analyzed the satellite images, noted that the Kremlin has "significantly expanded" its network with the intent to "attack Ukraine and keep NATO states at risk of such attacks."

Monnik further stated, "This expansion of launch sites demonstrates how Russia has increased its capacity to deploy a larger number of drones while simultaneously using technology to make the drone types harder to intercept."

The bases are supplied by several Russian munitions factories, including the Alabuga special economic zone in Tatarstan, a large-scale production campus. Some facilities have been converted from military bases and civilian airports, while others have been directly established in rural areas.

European and U.S. intelligence officials suspect that Russia is considering carrying out an armed provocation on Polish soil, including missile or drone attacks on critical infrastructure or false-flag operations attributed to Ukraine.

This assessment comes weeks after U.S. intelligence warned that Putin might authorize hybrid operations and cyberattacks against allied territory to test the alliance's cohesion. This follows a recent incident in late July when a Russian Kh-101 missile struck Polish soil, creating a 10-meter crater in an agricultural field 94 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

NATO, currently facing internal tensions over defense burden-sharing between the United States and Europe, responded decisively.

An alliance official told The Telegraph, "We are prepared to defend every inch of allied territory" and added, "Drones have fundamentally altered the character of modern warfare and have become a decisive factor on the battlefield. We are rapidly expanding our capacity to produce, operate, and neutralize drones at scale."