Panic is growing in Europe over Putin's "blacklist"

In the statement, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that the leadership of several European countries, faced with heavy losses and a shortage of troops in the Ukrainian army, has decided to increase the production and delivery of drones to Ukraine for strikes on Russian territory.

“We consider this a deliberate step leading to a sharp escalation of the military-political situation across Europe and the gradual transformation of these countries into Ukraine’s strategic rear,” the ministry said.

As a reminder, the ministry revealed the names and addresses of companies in Europe that allegedly produce drones used for attacks on Russia. Branches of Ukrainian drone manufacturers are said to be located in cities across several European countries, including London, Munich, Prague, and Riga. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev escalated the rhetoric, saying the list should be taken “literally” as a list of potential targets.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Steven Pifer dismissed the threats in an interview with the Kyiv Post, describing them as a classic intimidation tactic.

“First of all, former President Medvedev says many things that are, frankly, on the verge of madness or completely insane. So I’m not sure his comments should be taken seriously,” Pifer said.

According to him, Moscow is trying to intimidate European governments and companies in order to discourage them from cooperating with Ukraine on drone development.

“The Russians want to intimidate those countries in Europe that are now working with Ukraine on drone production,” Pifer said. “Given that the Russian military is currently fully engaged in the war in Ukraine, does Russia really want to start a conflict with NATO countries?” he told the Kyiv Post.

Czech Republic, Italy, Germany on the list...

According to the Russian ministry, components for Ukrainian drones are produced by companies in Germany, Turkey, Israel, Spain, Italy, and the Czech Republic. In Spain, facilities in Madrid produce components used by Kyiv for attacks on Russia, including receivers for satellite radio-navigation signals. In Italy, production takes place in four factories, including one in Venice. In Germany, piston engines are manufactured in the city of Hanau. In the Czech Republic, production is located in Prague; in Israel, factories operate in Haifa and Or Yehuda; and in Turkey, production sites are in Ankara and Yalova.

In addition to engines and receivers, some companies produce mobile network connection modules and carbon fiber for aircraft structures. These include Firepoint and Horizon Tech in the United Kingdom (London, Mildenhall, Leicester), Davinci Avia and Airlogistics Germany (Munich), Kort in Denmark (Stevning), Lithuania (Vilnius), Terminal Autonomy in Latvia (Riga), Destinus in the Netherlands (Hengelo), Antonov State Enterprise and Ukrspecsystems in Poland (Mielec, Tarnów), and DeViRo in the Czech Republic (Prague, Kolín). These companies reportedly produce drones such as FP-1, FP-2, Striker, Da Vinci, Anubis, HaKi AK-1000, AK-400 Kosa (Skit), Ruta, An-196 Lyutyi, RAM-2X, and Bulava, according to TASS.

The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Russian ambassador on Thursday to demand an explanation for the threats directed at Czech companies. Drones have proven to be one of the most effective weapons on the Ukrainian battlefield, prompting growing interest among Western countries in supporting their production and delivery to Kyiv. Analysts believe the Russian threats are an attempt to exert psychological pressure and deter Europe from strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities.