The Ukrainian Way of Digital Warfighting Volunteers, Applications, and Intelligence Sharing Platforms

Stefan Soesanto

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Introduction

The Ukrainian military situational awareness platform Delta (Дельта) is at the heart of this CSS report. Initially developed in 2015 by Aerorozvidka (Аеророзвідка – then military unit A2724), the platform is currently owned, maintained, and upgraded under the auspices of the Center for Innovation and Development of Defense Technologies within the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense (Центром інновацій та розвитку оборонних технологій Міністерства оборони України).

Starting from the war in Donbas in 2014 to the Russian invasion in 2022, the origin and evolution of Delta provide a near perfect case study to trace the development of digital warfare thinking in Ukraine. For this CSS cyber defense report, Delta serves as the red thread to introduce to the reader a host of digital platforms, mobile applications, and Ukrainian volunteer groups that helped to shape Delta. As the war in Ukraine has entered its third year, the story of Delta provides a window into Ukraine’s miltech revolution. This report provides analysts, researchers, and policymakers with a comprehensive understanding as to (1) what opportunities and stumbling blocks volunteer groups had to overcome in their bottom-up push for change, (2) why and how Aerorozvidka pushed for the adoption of a concept known as ‘network-centric warfare’, and (3) how Russia has reacted to Ukraine’s digital warfighting efforts