Russia has used thousands of them against Ukraine.The weapons are produced by Zala Aero Group, a privately-owned group of Russian companies, with the state holding a minority stake in one of its entities. It is one of the largest manufacturers of Russian combat drones attacking Ukraine.Like other Russian defense producers, the group has been targeted by Western sanctions and export restrictions that seek to undercut the Russian war effort by prohibiting the sale of defense-related parts and tech to Russia.In theory, the sanctions are supposed to be effective against the production of drones, which are highly dependent on imported parts. In reality, the use of Zala Aero’s drones in the Russian war against Ukraine has been growing. Over the past year, it tripled.