Ukraine’s cheap, effective drones boost defense and exports, but extensive politicization and complex bureaucracy risk slowing production at a critical moment.

The drones are still in limited supply and are not always the ideal interception method, Ukrainian soldiers and an official told Business Insider.

Germany is undergoing a significant military rearmament. The change has been driven by the ongoing war in Ukraine and U.S. pressure on Europe to shoulder more of its defense.

Russia is pushing to take over all of eastern Ukraine's Donbas region, where one resident tells NPR that she feels her "life depends on how our guys at the front hold on."

Anti-drone mesh nets now cover the city of Izium, located about 100 kilometers from Kharkiv. Most residents feel reassured by these makeshift defenses, but for others, they serve as a stark reminder of the ever-present threat that looms over them.