Zelenskyy: Twice as many ground robotic systems already contracted as in 2025
A total of 25,000 ground-based robotic systems have already been procured for the Ukrainian Defense Forces — twice as many as planned for 2025. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced this on his Telegram channel, according to the Ukrainian News agency.
He reported on a meeting of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief’s Staff, which specifically addressed the supply of ground robotic systems to the Defense Forces. Zelenskyy noted that ground robotic systems are currently one of the Defense Forces’ most pressing needs, and production and supply must keep pace with demand.
"The procurement volume of ground robotic systems must be significantly higher than last year. 25,000 units of ground robotic systems have already been procured — twice as many as last year — and this is only the starting point: the number will be increased significantly, and procurement is ongoing," he said.
Zelenskyy instructed the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defense to verify the actual need for ground robotic systems and the level of supply on a monthly basis.
The Supreme Commander-in-Chief’s Staff also discussed ballistic defense, heard reports on the supply of missiles for anti-ballistic systems, and the status of implementing agreements with partners.
"It is important that supplies in May be no less than what we have already received in terms of commitments from partners, and this is a direct task for our diplomats and military command. We also discussed the status of work on alternative means of anti-ballistic defense — both those available globally and our own Ukrainian developments," the President said.
In addition, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief’s Staff heard intelligence reports on the state of the economy and social processes in russia following the first quarter of this year.
"We are observing a significant deterioration in key indicators and noticeable losses in Russian exports. Despite the Russian leadership’s attempts to use the war in Iran to rectify the financial situation, the actual results for Russia are negative. In particular, our long-term sanctions are having an effect. We will continue to apply pressure on the aggressor," Zelenskyy said.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, in April the Ministry of Defense announced that it had standardized and approved for use by the Armed Forces of Ukraine the Bizon-L ground robotic complex system.
Earlier, the Ministry of Defense announced that it plans to sign contracts with manufacturers of ground-based robotic systems in the first half of 2026 for the delivery of 25,000 units of ground robotic systems, which is twice as many as in all of 2025.