Ukrainian forces are using unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) to evacuate wounded troops from frontline positions, but the robotic systems themselves have become targets for Russian drones and artillery.

Ukraine has increasingly turned to ground robots for casualty evacuation as Russian surveillance and strike capabilities make traditional evacuation routes more dangerous. The systems help deny Russia another opportunity to target medics and evacuation crews. Now, the robots themselves come under Russian fire during evacuation missions.

Maksym Shtrul, commander of the 3rd Medical Company of Ukraine’s 1st Separate Medical Battalion, said Russian forces try to strike anything that moves. He described the challenges of robotic medical evacuations in an interview with Army FM, reported by ArmyInform on 27 August.

In one of the first major operations of this kind, around four UGVs were used to evacuate a single wounded soldier. During one mission, a robotic vehicle moving across an exposed area came under attack from about 15 Russian FPV drones as well as artillery fire.

Russian fire is only one part of the danger

Shtrul said it would be inaccurate to describe Russia as systematically hunting UGVs specifically, but concentrated attacks on robotic systems have occurred.

The robots also face the physical challenges of the battlefield. Evacuation routes are planned in advance, but Russian strikes can suddenly make them impassable. A glide-bomb strike can leave a crater around five meters deep in a road, while a fallen tree can block a route with no way around it.

UGVs cannot cross rivers and can also become stuck in mud, fall into holes or become trapped on difficult terrain. Engineers may need to assist operators when a vehicle encounters such obstacles.

A robotic evacuation takes a team

Getting a wounded soldier out with a UGV requires far more than an operator driving a robot.

A specialist prepares the mission and route, while a medic maintains contact with the wounded soldier and helps prepare them for loading. Operators must also continuously monitor communications, which can deteriorate suddenly at the front.

When a communications problem is expected, the robot can be temporarily moved into cover. Engineers are available to help operators deal with mechanical or terrain-related problems during the mission.

Why Ukraine uses UGVs

Despite becoming targets themselves, UGVs can reduce the number of people exposed to Russian fire during medical evacuation.

Shtrul said the systems are less visible than large tracked or wheeled vehicles and can be more easily concealed under trees or in vegetation. They also generate less heat, making them harder to detect with thermal imaging.

The systems cannot replace medical personnel entirely. Medical treatment available during the journey is limited, and a UGV may have to stop near another Ukrainian position if the wounded soldier needs immediate care.

The growing use of robotic evacuation reflects the increasingly dangerous conditions faced by Ukrainian medics at the front. Even when no medic is physically sent into the exposed area, the vehicle carrying a wounded soldier can still draw Russian drones and artillery fire.

A deliberately set fire at a Tallinn building used by Milrem Robotics did not disrupt its deliveries of military ground robots to Ukraine, CEO Kuldar Väärsi told Reuters on 19 August 2026. Estonian prosecutors said three suspects had been detained in Latvia.

The Milrem arson case fits in a broader pattern of suspected or confirmed sabotage against Ukraine’s military supply chain. Similar attacks throughout Europe have hit plants making drones, thermal optics, and other equipment for the front. Milrem supplies unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) that help Ukrainian units move supplies and evacuate wounded without putting drawing upon valuable manpower.

The fire broke out overnight on 15 August in Tallinn’s Lasnamäe district after a resident reported suspicious activity. Nobody was injured, and Milrem has not disclosed what was damaged.

Milrem says it is one of only two foreign suppliers with unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) fleets in active Ukrainian service and expects more than 200 of its systems to be operating there by year-end.

The Netherlands is funding more than 150 additional Milrem vehicles for Ukraine. In June, Milrem and VDL Defentec opened a Dutch production line to support the delivery of more than 100 THeMIS UGVs. Väärsi the fire had not affected production, supply chains, or delivery schedules for this year or next.

Unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) are tracked or wheeled machines with no crew aboard. ArmyInform reported that Ukrainian troops use them to carry ammunition, fuel, and food along exposed routes. A Ukrainian commander identified only as Nazar told ArmyInform that frontline units still rely mainly on UGVs for logistics, although some robots carry explosives.

Three suspects detained as investigators examine possible Russian role

State Prosecutor Gardi Anderson said prosecutors suspect all three detainees of taking part in the arson. Latvian authorities are holding them while the two countries arrange their transfer to Estonia. An Estonian court approved prosecutors’ requests to place two in pretrial detention. A decision on the third remained pending.

Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said investigators were examining whether the fire was the result of sabotage and whether Russia was involved. Authorities have not disclosed the suspects’ alleged motive, whether anyone directed them, or released evidence connecting the attack to Moscow.

Arson has hit other European suppliers to Ukraine

In March, a fire destroyed nearly all of the production capacity at a Czech plant that makes drones and thermal optics for Ukraine. Authorities detained four suspects while investigating possible terrorism and Russian involvement.

Lithuania also charged six people over an attempt to burn a factory supplying radio-wave scanners to Ukraine. Investigators said Russia-based organizers with GRU links coordinated the operation and connected the network to attempted attacks elsewhere in Europe.

Russia has denied Western accusations that it conducts sabotage in Europe.

Estonia is investigating whether Russia was behind a suspected arson attack at a Tallinn building used by Milrem Robotics, Prime Minister Kristen Michal said on 18 August.

Officials have not released evidence yet connecting Moscow to the fire.

The fire hit a site used by a defense contractor that makes unmanned ground vehicles, including THeMIS vehicles used in Ukraine. The Estonian investigation into the Milrem fire comes amid suspected or confirmed arson plots against other European factories supplying Ukraine.

Estonian prosecutors said the fire, which began overnight into 15 August, may have been deliberately set. A resident reported suspicious activity nearby. Investigators identified suspects and asked a court to detain them. No one was injured, and Milrem CEO Kuldar Väärsi told the Estonian outlet Postimees that it was too early to assess the damage.

The company executive said the site was not an office building but declined to identify its contents or what was damaged, including whether unmanned ground vehicles were inside. The company has not said whether production or deliveries were affected.

Milrem’s THeMIS vehicles have operated in Ukraine since 2022. By 2023, the company had delivered 15 of the vehicles to Ukrainian forces and border guards. A Dutch-funded order for more than 150 additional vehicles followed in 2025. A new Dutch production line began making them in June 2026 and handed over its first vehicles for Ukraine.

Other factories supplying Ukraine have faced arson

In March, a fire damaged a Czech facility belonging to LPP Holding, which had supplied hundreds of AI-guided drones to Ukraine. Czech authorities investigated possible terrorism and later detained a fourth suspect.

In January, Lithuania charged six people over an attempt to burn a factory supplying radio-wave scanners to Ukraine. Investigators said Russia-based organizers with GRU links coordinated the operation and connected the network to attempted attacks elsewhere in Europe.

Estonia has traced earlier attacks to Russian intelligence

Estonia has also uncovered Russian-directed attacks on its own territory. In 2024, Estonia’s security service detained 10 people over a Russian-coordinated operation that included damaging cars belonging to then-Interior Minister Lauri Läänemets and a journalist and defacing monuments. Officials said the operation sought to spread fear and tension. Journalists from The Insider, Re:Baltica, and Delfi reported how the GRU recruited Baltic residents for vandalism and arson.

In 2025, an Estonian court found that a Moldovan national working for the GRU burned a supermarket as a trial run before firebombing a Ukrainian restaurant in Tallinn. His cousin filmed the second attack.

Those cases explain why investigators are examining a possible Russian role in the Milrem fire, but they do not establish who caused it.