The Ukrainian war effort is becoming increasingly robotic, with Ukrainian drone strikes deep into Russian territory having become a regular occurrence and President Volodymyr Zelensky recently claiming even to have secured a battlefield victory exclusively with robotic forces, both drones and robotic ground systems. But, as recent developments make clear, a large part of the robotic forces fighting Ukraine’s new style of war are not so much Ukrainian as “German-Ukrainian” and in fact are manufactured in Germany.
Thus, last month, during inter-governmental consultations in Berlin, Zelensky and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced a “strategic partnership” between Germany and Ukraine involving extensive military cooperation and, more specifically, cooperation in the production of robotic systems. According to a report in the German daily Die Welt, Zelensky called the “drone deal” the “biggest deal of its sort in Europe”.
Perhaps not coincidentally, the day after the consultations, the Russian Ministry of Defence published the names and addresses of companies in Europe that it said are manufacturing drones or drone components for the Ukrainian military. In an English-language post on X, former Russian president Dmitri Medvedev explicitly described them as “potential targets” for Russian military strikes.
Following a welcoming ceremony with much military pomp, the Zelensky visit got underway with a viewing of “German-Ukrainian” combat-drones and a robotic armoured vehicle in the Chancellery. Decked out in the German and Ukrainian national colours, the weaponry included, per Die Welt: “The Strila, which can intercept Iranian Shahed kamikaze drones and the related Russian Geran drones at high speed and with excellent manoeuvrability; the Linsa, which can transport weapons and ammunition to the front or drop them on targets; and the rolling Termit, which can attack enemy positions and evacuate casualties.”
Germany and Ukraine already concluded a Memorandum of Understanding on increased cooperation in armaments manufacturing in October 2025. Shortly thereafter, in December, Germany’s Quantum Systems and Ukraine’s Frontline Robotics launched a joint venture, Quantum Frontline Industries, to manufacture up to 10,000 Linza drones per year in Germany. A first batch of drones was ceremonially “delivered” to Zelensky at Quantum Systems manufacturing facilities in Gauting, Bavaria in February. Zelensky was accompanied by the German Minister of Defence Boris Pastorius. (See the German Ministry of Defence’s press release here.) According to German press reports, the weaponry was actually shipped to Ukraine at the end of March.
In the context of the April consultations in Berlin, Quantum Systems announced two additional joint ventures with Ukrainian partners: WIY Drones, manufacturer of the above-mentioned Strila interceptor-drones, and Tencore, which manufactures the Termit: The unmanned armoured vehicle that was likewise on display at the Chancellery.
Moreover, per a report in the German business paper Handelsblatt, the German firm has longstanding relationships with both Ukrainian firms and indeed holds shares in WIY Drones. According to Handelsblatt, in addition to the 10,000 Linza drones that it is supposed to supply annually to Ukraine, Quantum Systems also has a contract to supply 15,000 Strila drones.
Likewise on the day of the Berlin consultations, the software start-up Auterion announced a contract to produce “thousands of mid-range, heavy AI-guided autonomous strike systems” as part of a previously established joint-venture with the Ukrainian drone manufacturer Airlogix. According to the Auterion press release, “the contract covers mid-range X-wing and delta-wing unmanned aerial systems manufactured in Germany for the Armed Forces of Ukraine” and represents “the largest German production order for heavy autonomous strike drones to date”.
The company, which prides itself on developing software not for individual drones, but rather for drone “swarms”, promised “autonomous strike at the volumes modern warfare demands”. Auterion-Airlogix Anubis and Seth-X strike drones were also viewed by Merz and Zelensky at the Chancellery in Berlin. The drones are reported to have a range of from 1000 to 1500 kilometres.
The German Ministry of Defence left no doubt that the point of such offensive systems is to be able to strike deep into Russian territory. Thus, a Ministry of Defence press release published the day after the Berlin consultations notes that “Germany will support Ukraine in financing so-called deep strike capabilities”. “Deep strike” is not a translation. It is in English in the press release.
The press release continues by quoting Minister of Defence Pistorius to the effect that “we have agreed on the joint development and production of middle-range and longer-range strike drones”.
In the meanwhile, images posted on social media suggest that Russian forces have shot down a first Auterion-Airlogix Anubis drone, which, furthermore, was outfitted with an US-owned Starlink terminal.
Suggesting coordinated messaging, Zelensky made his dramatic video announcement about Ukraine’s robotic battlefield success just the day before the Berlin consultations.
The list of “potential targets” that the Russian Ministry of Defence published the day after the consultations included Auterion’s Ukrainian partner Airlogix with a Munich address.
German police conduct 13th Day of Action against online ‘hate’