Ukraine’s Defense Procurement Agency significantly expands ground robotics contracts
As reported by the Ukrainian news outlet Militarnyi, mobile teams of the Defense Procurement Agency (DPA) are currently hitting the road to evaluate technological processes, production quality, and capacity at private enterprises under contract. Serhiy Prolubshchikov, the head of DPA's Ground Equipment Office, announced that this year the agency has already contracted approximately 8,000 ground robotic systems.
Prolubshchikov emphasized the particular focus on smaller producers whose operations need close study and support. "We have concentrated our efforts on small private enterprises, as they are uncharted territory, embarking on this journey for the first time, and they need assistance," he explained. He cited the rapid growth in contracts for ground robotic systems as a key example: "Whereas last year we secured around 600 ground robotic systems, this year we've already contracted about 8,000. And this effort is ongoing."
DPA experts are actively visiting these enterprises to assess their production capabilities, technological processes, and product quality. Recently, the Ukrainian Armed Forces received a new robot armed with a machine gun.
Earlier, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry has codified and approved the deployment of domestically produced BATON unmanned aerial systems within Ukraine's Defense Forces.
It was also reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have received the new Peklo missile-drone, which boasts a speed of 700 km/h and a range exceeding 700 km.