Europe | Rise of the robots

Ukraine is inching towards robot-on-robot fighting

It is ahead of Russia, for now

Ukrainian military control unmanned ground vehicle platform Rys Pro equipped with a remote-controlled machine-gun turret
Photograph: Getty Images
|KYIV|4 min read

ABRUTALIST COMPLEX somewhere in Kyiv, strewn with rubbish and weeds, offers a vision for Ukraine’s survival on the future battlefield. At one end is a recruitment office, where lines of 20-somethings are receiving their first orders. At another sit trenches, obstacle courses, and the 3rd Assault Brigade’s “Kill House”, a training ground for military robots. This is where the elite brigade is stress-testing the unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) Ukraine hopes will soon begin to carry the burden of war in place of men.

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This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Rise of the robots”

From the June 28th 2025 edition

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