Better to use (and lose) robots than soldiers: Ukraine’s UGV drive

(David Kirichenko – ASPI The Strategist) In fighting an asymmetric war against a much larger adversary, Ukraine has sought to leverage technology wherever possible. First came the proliferation of first-person-view (FPV) drones across the battlefield. Now, uncrewed ground vehicles (UGVs) are beginning to spread across the front line. For Ukraine, manpower has been one of the war’s greatest constraints. Heavy casualties have made preserving soldiers increasingly important, driving efforts to replace people with machines wherever possible. ‘In April, UGVs performed over 10,000 missions. Most of these are logistic operations: delivering supplies to the front line and back,’ said Ihor Shmyryov, head of the UGV department at procurement organisation Brave1. He believes Ukraine should be able to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky’s target of supplying 50,000 UGVs to the armed forces this year with ease. – Better to use (and lose) robots than soldiers: Ukraine’s UGV drive | The Strategist