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Russian Army to set up first military unit armed with strike robots

Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu inspected on Friday the fulfillment of the defense procurement plan at the 766th Production and Technological Enterprise in Nakhabino outside Moscow that develops and manufactures robotic vehicles of various designation

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu Alexey Ereshko/Russian Ministry of Defense press service/TASS

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu

© Alexey Ereshko/Russian Ministry of Defense press service/TASS

NAKHABINO /Moscow Region/, April 9. /TASS/. The first unit armed with strike robots will be established in the Russian Army, Russia’s Defense Ministry announced on Friday.

Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu inspected on Friday the fulfillment of the defense procurement plan at the 766th Production and Technological Enterprise in Nakhabino outside Moscow that develops and manufactures robotic vehicles of various designation.

"As Chief of the Army Main Staff Vasily Tonkoshurov reported to the defense minister, the first unit with strike robots will be set up in the Russian Armed Forces to operate five Uran-9 robotic systems or 20 combat vehicles," the ministry said.

For the purposes of elaborating methods and forms of employing squads with robotic systems, "an experimental unit is being established on the premises of one of the Defense Ministry’s scientific research centers," it said.

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"This center will subsequently train personnel that will operate Uran-9 strike robotic vehicles in operational military units," the ministry added.

Uran-9 robotic vehicles were earlier employed only as separate systems, it said.

The Uran-9 combat robot is produced by the 766th Production and Technological Enterprise. It is armed with a 30mm automatic gun, Ataka anti-tank missiles and Shmel flamethrowers.

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