The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, together with manufacturers of robotic platforms, is currently accelerating efforts to create and integrate effective ground-based robotic systems into the Ukrainian Armed Forces. It is expected that these systems will provide optimal solutions for addressing a range of tasks on the battlefield.
While unmanned aerial vehicles have found clear roles on the battlefield today, the issue of ground-based unmanned systems remains unresolved. However, as of now, the Ukrainian Armed Forces' demand for ground robotic platforms exceeds 10,000 units.
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Therefore, to promote dialogue in this direction, an expert meeting titled "Ground Robotic Systems" was held in Kyiv on July 27.
The meeting was organized by the Department of Military-Technical Policy, Armament Development, and Military Equipment of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine in collaboration with the newly established Ministry of Defense Accelerator.
The event was attended by Deputy Minister of Defense Volodymyr Havrylov, representatives from various specialized departments of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the General Staff, and the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as over 30 manufacturers of various robotic systems.
The purpose of the meeting was to facilitate effective dialogue among official structures, potential users of the systems, and manufacturers of ground-based robotic systems. They were supposed to determine the expectations and needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine regarding such systems, as well as the problems and challenges faced by the manufacturers of this weaponry.
During the meeting, participants conducted an overview of various robotic platforms from Ukrainian manufacturers, assessed their effectiveness, and analyzed the experience of foreign manufacturers.
An important aspect of the meeting was the discussion on expediting the procedures for adopting robotic systems into service and the involvement of foreign funding sources to accelerate the development of new models.
In general, as it was highlighted by Gavrylov in his comments to the "Industrial Portal," the current need for domestically-produced ground robotic platforms in Ukraine could be divided into three priority categories.
The first and most important category is the logistic robotic systems for evacuating the wounded, delivering ammunition, and providing provisions directly to the areas of combat engagement with the enemy.
The second group consists of mobile "combat robots" equipped with various combat modules, ranging from machine guns to grenade launchers and anti-tank weapons.
Finally, the third group includes stationary platforms, that are essentially remotely controlled combat modules. They are designed to be installed at specific predetermined positions.
Defense Express reported that the U.S. Army Gave Its Boston Dynamics-made Robot Dog to Help in Ukraine. It also reported about the development the Thermonator, which combined a robot-dog and a flamethrower.
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