Ukraine's Defense Ministry is considering awarding drone-purchase points to units when Russian soldiers kill themselves under drone pressure on the battlefield, Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said on 29 March. The proposal follows daily frontline video reports confirming that the number of such cases is growing. The Minister says this behavior is driven by Russia's ban on surrender and the absence of any evacuation for soldiers trapped under drone swarms.
A gap in the scoring system
Militarnyi says the proposal emerged after soldier-journalist Pavlo Kazarin noted a problem with the existing eBaly points system: his unit spent two FPV drones on a Russian soldier who survived, then killed himself — and received zero credit. Under current rules, units earn 12 eBaly points for a confirmed enemy kill. "Self-destruction" by a wounded enemy, with no confirmed drone kill, leaves the unit with nothing.
Brave1 is Ukraine's state defense technology cluster, launched in April 2023, that funds and coordinates the development of military tech — issuing grants to drone, electronic warfare, and weapons developers, helping them get their products codified for military use, and connecting manufacturers directly with frontline units. Its marketplace arm, Brave1 Market, lets units spend eBaly combat points on equipment.
Fedorov proposed awarding 12 points — the same as for a confirmed kill — to units in whose zone a Russian commits suicide, provided video confirmation is available.
"Perhaps it would be worth awarding 12 eBaly points to the unit in whose zone of responsibility the occupier committed self-destruction — subject to video confirmation?" he wrote.
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Why it's happening
Fedorov said Ukraine receives daily frontline video of Russian soldiers killing themselves, most often after being wounded by a drone or when surrounded by a drone swarm, and the number is growing every day. He attributed the phenomenon directly to decisions made in Moscow. Russian troops are sent to the front undertrained, with no evacuation options and constant drone pressure. The Russian military leadership bans surrender, while propaganda insists death is preferable to capture — even though prisoner exchanges between the sides happen regularly.
"Russia is taking away its citizens' right to life," Fedorov wrote.
Record losses ahead
Fedorov said March may set a record for Russian military losses. Current battlefield dynamics indicate casualties will exceed 30,000 killed and seriously wounded for the month. He added that reaching 50,000 losses per month would have "catastrophic consequences" for Russian forces, and said he would separately outline steps to make that figure achievable.
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