- Ukraine launched ePoints in 2024, rewarding units for destroying Russian targets with a points system
- Units earn points for killing or wounding Russian soldiers and destroying military assets on the battlefield
- Points can be exchanged for drones, unmanned vehicles, and electronic warfare gear via the Brave1 marketplace
Ukraine has introduced a points-based battlefield system, which rewards military units for destroying Russian targets. They can exchange “kills” for weapons and equipment through an online marketplace.
The system, ePoints, was launched in 2024, and tracks battlefield performance using data submitted by Ukrainian units. Troops earn points for killing or wounding Russian soldiers, destroying military hardware, electronic warfare systems and enemy positions.
A wounded Russian soldier earns eight points, while killing one gives a unit 12 points, The Times reported. Units can later use these points to buy unmanned ground vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicles, first-person view drones and electronic warfare systems through the Brave1 marketplace.
Lieutenant Colonel Denys Poliachenko, head of the Unmanned Systems Directorate of Ukraine's 7th Corps, said the system motivates troops by directly linking combat performance to access to equipment.
“They understand that they are both defending the country and immediately earning the means to obtain the equipment they need,” he told The Times.
The report said all frontline Ukrainian units are ranked on a leaderboard much like the popular game Call of Duty. To claim points, units must submit mission data for verification.
According to The Economist, Russian forces are currently facing sustained territorial losses for the first time since October 2023. Ukraine reportedly recaptured nearly 189 square kilometres over a recent 30-day period with drone strikes and heavy Russian attrition slowing Moscow's offensive.
Ukrainian defence companies are also benefiting from the model. Oleg Rogynskyy, founder of defence technology company Uforce, said the marketplace gives firms direct feedback on how effective their products are in combat.
“It is a very meritocratic system,” he said.
Troops can purchase systems such as the Nemesis drone, which has reportedly been used against Russian artillery, military shelters and naval targets in the Black Sea.
The report stated Ukraine's decentralised model differs from proposed UK defence reforms which are expected to give top military officials greater control over procurement decisions.
“Ukraine is the opposite, where brigade commanders at the lowest level select what they are going to buy,” a source familiar with the UK changes told The Times.
Ukraine is increasingly relying on drones for long-range strikes inside Russia, it added. President Volodymyr Zelensky recently said Ukrainian drones targeted the Syzran oil refinery, located more than 500 miles inside Russian territory.
Ukraine's Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said Russia lost 35,203 troops killed or seriously wounded last month. Kyiv's goal is to push Russian monthly losses to 50,000 soldiers which will make the war too costly for Moscow to sustain.
