Episode 17: The Janus Protocol: Drones – The New Face of Warfare

Guests Nolan Peterson and Kateryna Bondar join host Dave Brown to discuss the rapid expansion of drone warfare across numerous conflict zones. Janus, the Roman God of new beginnings, symbolizes the change from one condition to another and from past to future. The two faces of Janus also represent transitions because he could see into the past with one face, and toward the future with the other. This is a perfect metaphor of this momentous shift in technical weaponry unfolding right in front of us. The future of the modern battlefield is here, and it’s most clearly seen in the rapid growth in drone warfare capabilities and the increasing lethality of the current threat environment it is creating.

Articles:

• Ukraine drones hunt down Russian soldiers as incursion into Belgorod continues – YouTube/The Sun – 10 Apr 2025 (video)
• Battle For Pokrovsk. Ukraine's Drone Pilots Are Trying To Stop Russia | Ukraine Front Line Update, RFE/RL – 7 April 2025 (video)
• Ukraine's DIY drone makers are helping fighters on the front lines, E. Beardsley, NPR, 12 Apr 2025
• Ukraine Is Making FPV Drones Without Chinese Parts And At Lower Cost, D. Hambling, Forbes, 8 Apr 2025 (paywall)
• US Army tests FPV drones in Germany under ‘Project Shiv’, G. Allison, UKDJ, 6 Apr 2025
• Ukraine has capacity to produce 5 million FPV drones per year, advisor says, M. Fornusek, Kyiv Independent, 8 Apr 2025
• Marine Corps stands up ‘attack drone team’ to take lessons from Ukraine and teach them to grunts, J. Schogol, Task & Purpose, 4 Apr 2025
• The century-long reign of the machine gun is over, a Russian strategist argues, M. Peck, Business Insider, 16 Mar 2025 (paywall)
• Ukraine’s Future Vision and Current Capabilities for Waging AI-Enabled Autonomous Warfare, K. Bondar, CSIS, 6 Mar 2025
• Heven Drones unveils new hydrogen-powered, long range UAV at IDEX, S. Frantzman, Breaking Defense, 13 Feb 2025