On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly international news dispatchLaser beams, robodogs and drone-zapping microwaves – these are the types of weapons that could be deployed on battlefields in the not too distant future. Some are already here. The threat of a wider war in Europe feels increasingly real to many on the continent, after Russia’s drone incursion into Poland sparked fears that Russian aggression will continue to spill beyond Ukraine’s borders. The Ukraine war has revolutionised military conflict, with futuristic weapons, such as fibre-optic drones which are immune to jamming and radio frequency detection, drone protection nets, and ground robots, all used by Moscow and Kyiv’s forces.Now, weapons being developed and tested by the biggest militaries in the world are making science fiction a reality, with ever increasing reliance on artificial intelligence (AI).open image in galleryRussian drones are already wreaking havoc across Ukraine, like this attack on a residential building in Kyiv (Reuters)Defence experts have acknowledged the dystopian reality created by the use of robotic and autonomous weapons, as critics warn against delegating life-and-death decisions to machines.Lt Col Jahara “Franky” Matisek, is a US Air Force command pilot and command centre director at the US Northern Command.He told The Independent: “Ultimately, science fiction has to now meet supply chains, where minerals, rare earths, and other metals become strategic chokepoints – mostly controlled by China – for acquiring the needed materials to make drones, batteries, lasers, AI-enabled hardware, and numerous other ‘futuristic’ weapon systems.“Lasers and microwaves make drones cheap to defeat, not to mention EW (electronic warfare) interrupting drones as well; and of course AI accelerates decision-making,” he said. “But judgement and logistics remain irreplaceable.”His sentiments were shared by Patrick Wilcken, a researcher on military, security and policing at Amnesty International, who warned of the moral, ethical and legal risks posed by such weapons.“These range from practical issues related to the risks of bias, discrimination and overly rigid categorisation of people to more fundamental questions of dehumanisation and the undermining of human dignity,” he said. Here, The Independent looks at some of the weapons making their way to the battlefield. Drone Warfareopen image in galleryA Geran/Shahed-type drone that crashed inside Poland after it was launched at Ukraine by Russia this week (Telewizja Republika)The use of drones by Ukraine and Russia has transformed conventional warfare, serving in both countries’ defence and offence capabilities. Both sides have scaled up the mass production of drones, including one-way attack drones, reconnaissance drones, cheap kamikaze models, first-person view drones for precision strikes, and many more. Electronic warfare jamming has also become crucial to the conflict, allowing each side to divert the other’s drones. Drones can cost anything from a few thousand US dollars to more than $100,000, depending on their purpose and how advanced they are.The Ukrainian defence ministry claims that around 95 per cent of drones used on the frontline are produced domestically. Russia, meanwhile, has significantly grown its domestic drone production since its full-scale invasion in 2022, reducing its reliance on Iranian-made Shahed drones.This has allowed it to fire tens of thousands of drones at Ukraine, with increasingly large numbers of projectiles used in its nightly barrages leading to a record of 823 on Tuesday this week.Armed Robot Animalsopen image in galleryThe US has been testing a ‘robot dog’ armed with an AI-enabled gun turret in the Middle East (US Army)Earlier this month, China displayed an array of its latest weaponry in a massive military parade in Beijing. Featured among the fighter jets and goose-stepping troops were its “robot wolves”. According to Chinese state media, these four-legged robots can fire precise shots and work in rough terrain. They are designed to assist in complex and dangerous battlefield conditions, with the aim to replace human soldiers to reduce combat casualties. Weighing up at 70 kilograms (154 pounds), the wolves can hit targets which are up to 100 metres away, Chinese media states. “They’re suited for urban reconnaissance, breaching, or remote weapons but are limited by battery life, vulnerable communications, and small payloads,” said Lt Col Matisek.“Their value hinges on robust sensors and secure networks, not just the platform. A lot of their drone tech in each domain looks impressive for parades, but is still too niche on battlefields – best for urban recon, not open-field charges.”Robot canines are not a new concept – the US has been testing their own versions, while Israel has been experimenting with robotic, unmanned combat systems to protect soldiers and military dogs in Gaza.Mechanical animals cost thousands of pounds to produce, but they can come as cheap as the gun-toting robot dogs sold in China by tech company Unitree Robotics for as little as $1,600 (£1,300).‘Flying Chernobyl’open image in galleryThe Burevestnik nuclear-powered missile, dubbed the Skyfall by Nato (Russian Defence Ministry)Dozens of nations have advanced cruise missiles in their arsenal, but Russia claims to be developing an “invincible” kind that is nuclear-powered, nuclear-armed and could, apparently, circle the Earth for an indefinite period of time.The 9M730 Burevestnik – codenamed SSC-X-9 Skyfall by Nato – is believed to be a subsonic cruise missile, with a potential range of 23,000km (15,000 miles) or more. Little is known about its capabilities, cost, or how realistic they are, but it has attracted ridicule from Western officials. “Why on Earth would you have a nuclear-powered, nuclear-tipped cruise missile? That is nothing more than a flying Chernobyl,” Marshall Billingslea, a former US arms control envoy, said in 2020.Russian president Vladimir Putin said the weapon is “invincible” to current and future missile defences, and that it has an almost unlimited range and unpredictable flight path.Experts, however, say it’s a bit more complicated than that. “The point about ‘an unpredictable trajectory’ of Burevestnik is that since it is designed to have an unlimited range thanks to its nuclear propulsion, it could take a long detour and fly around the areas where air defences are deployed,” Pavel Podvig, a senior researcher at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research, told The Independent.“Assuming, of course, that these areas are known in advance and that the density of air defences is relatively low.”High-Powered Microwaves open image in galleryThe US’s Tactical High-Power Operational Responder, or THOR, a high-powered microwave weapon that can disable a swarm of drones (US Air Force)Several countries are testing new high-powered microwave weapons that can take down swarms of drones. They work by emitting directed bursts of electromagnetic energy to disable the electronics of drones mid-flight.The US has been testing several types of these weapons, including the Tactical High-Power Operational Responder (THOR), Leonidas and Integrated Fires Protection Capability High-Powered Microwave, or IFPC-HPM. High-powered microwaves can cost millions to make, with the first THOR developed for around $18 million and subsequent models costing around $15 million to produce. The Leonidas system will have a purchase price of “between $10 and $20 million” per system according to Andy Lowery, the CEO of Epirus, which was contracted to produce several prototypes in 2023. The UK is also developing its own version, called the RapidDestroyer.While still in the experimental stage, there are drawbacks to these technologies, namely power demands, limited range and risks of electromagnetic interference with friendly systems, said Lt Col Matisek.“These will be critical for airbase and convoy defence against massed drones. So essentially the microwaves are swarm-killers—one pulse can fry multiple drones,” he added.“However, power and your own electronics are the weak links in this microwave killchain.”Laser Beams open image in galleryThe DragonFire laser weapon can hit aerial targets (Ministry of Defence)Laser weapons are directed-energy systems that use beams of light to damage or destroy targets, offering a low-cost alternative to traditional ammunition.The UK plans to fit four warships with the “cutting edge” DragonFire laser weapon from 2027, to better protect the vessels from missiles and drone attacks. DragonFire beams can hit a £1 coin from 1km away, with each shot costing less than £10, according to the UK Ministry of Defence.It is unclear exactly how much each unit will cost, but its production was funded by a £100m joint investment by the MoD and defence industry. “It offers speed-of-light precision and deep magazines but struggles in fog, rain, or smoke and demands significant power and cooling,” says Lt Col Matisek. “It will be a game-changer for cost-effective drone defence in clear conditions, less so in adverse weather. So it would probably be useful for countering the stuff the Houthis are shooting at Western vessels passing by in the Red Sea.”Countries including the US, China, and Israel are also developing their own laser weapons.
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Robodogs, laser beams and drone-zapping microwaves: The weapons that will decide the wars of the future
