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As part of its course toward fully autonomous warfare, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine plans to purchase 25,000 unmanned ground vehicles by mid-2026. This initiative is aimed at replacing live soldiers with robotic systems in all areas of frontline logistics and envisages a doubling of the deployment rate compared to 2025.
Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has reportedly said that the ultimate goal is to transfer 100% of frontline logistics to robotic systems. The strategy is already yielding results. In March alone, Ukrainian forces conducted more than 9,000 missions involving ground robots, ranging from ammunition delivery to evacuation of the wounded.
A key element of this technological leap was the official codification of the Bison-L logistics robot.These unmanned systems are proving indispensable for logistics tasks in high-risk areas and medical evacuation, protecting the military from the most dangerous aspects of frontline operations.
To optimize the defense supply chain, Ukraine has invested about $330 million (UAH 14 billion) since January of this year and delivered more than 181,000 systems – including drones and electronic warfare equipment – to the frontline through a direct digital procurement platform. Central to this build-up is the Bison-L, a logistics robot recently codified to NATO standards.
Bison-L is a heavy-duty vehicle designed to operate in the mud and snow of Donbas. This high-performance unmanned ground vehicle is capable of carrying 300 kg of cargo over a distance of up to 50 km and is already authorized for use by both Ukrainian forces and international allies. Using a combination of Starlink satellite data and heat-shielded radio communications, the Bison-L is making deliveries on the front lines – a task that was previously left to soldiers who were regularly targeted by Russian FPV drones.
To modernize its supply chain, the Ministry of Defense has radically reformed its procurement process by introducing an Amazon-like digital system that allows frontline units to order equipment directly from more than 280 domestic manufacturers. In addition, the ministry is already signing contracts until 2027 to ensure the long-term financial stability of the industry – so that factories can confidently increase production without the threat of sudden funding interruptions.
In a speech on April 14, Arms Manufacturers Day, President Zelenskiy emphasized the life-saving effect of autonomous warfare, noting that more than 22,000 unmanned missions last quarter allowed as many soldiers to stay out of harm’s way. To illustrate this shift, he cited an operation in the Kharkiv region in which the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade successfully captured a fortified Russian position using only robotic units. By coordinating the actions of aerial drones and unmanned ground vehicles, the unit took over the fortification without putting a single live soldier in harm’s way during the initial assault.