by Laser rays, robodogs and drone-zapping microwaves, these are the types of weapons that could be used in battlefields not too distant in the future. Some are already there.
The danger of another war in Europe is becoming increasingly real for many on the continent after the Russian drone in Poland feared that Russian aggression will continue to go beyond the borders of Ukraine.
The Ukraine decline has revolutionized military conflicts with futuristic weapons such as fiber-optical drones, which are immune to jamming and radio frequency recognition, drone protection networks and soil robots, all of which are used by Moscow and Kyiv.
Now weapons that are developed and tested by the largest military in the world that become science fiction and are increasingly dependent on artificial intelligence (AI).
Russian drones are already doing in Ukraine how this attack on a residential building in Kyiv (Reuters)
Defense experts have recognized the dystopian reality that was created by the use of robot and autonomous weapons, as critics warn that decisions for life and death delegate.
Lieutenant Colonel Jahara “Franky” Matisek is a pilot and director of the US Air Force Command and Command Center at the US Northern Command.
He said The independent: “Ultimately, science fiction must now fulfill the supply chains in which minerals, rare earths and other metals to strategic chokepoints-are mainly controlled by China to acquire the necessary materials for drones, batteries, lasers, AI-capable hardware and numerous other ‘futuristic’ weapon systems.
“Laser and microwaves make drones cheap to defeat, not to mention EW (electronic warfare), interrupt the drones, and of course AI accelerates the decision -making process,” he said. “But judgment and logistics remain irreplaceable.”
His feelings were shared by Patrick Wilcken, a researcher about military, security and police work at Amnesty International, who warned of the moral, ethical and legal risks that pronounce such weapons.
“These range from practical questions in connection with the risks of distortions, discrimination and excessively strict categorization of people to fundamental questions of dehumanism and the undermining of human dignity,” he said.
Here, The independent Look at some of the weapons that make their way to the battlefield.
Drone war
A Geran/Shahed drone that crashed in Poland after it was launched by Russia in Ukraine this week (Telewizja Republika)
The use of drones by Ukraine and Russia has changed conventional warfare and serves in the state’s defense and criminal offenses.
Both sides have enlarged the mass production of drones, including disposable attack drones, educational drones, cheap Kamikaze models, drones from the first person for precision blows and much more.
Electronic warfare has also become crucial for the conflict, so that each side distracted the drones of the other.
Drones can cost everything from a few thousand US dollars up to more than 100,000 US dollars (74,000 GBP), depending on their purpose and their advanced.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense claims that around 95 percent of the drones used at the front are produced in Germany. Russia has significantly expanded its domestic drone production since its complete invasion in 2022 and reduces its dependence on Iranian, Shahe drone.
This made it possible to release tens of thousands of drones in Ukraine, with increasing number of projectiles being used in its nightly blocking fires, which led to a record of 823 on Tuesday of this week.
Armed robot animals
The United States tested a “robot dog” with an AI-capable weapon tower in the Middle East (US Army) that are armed (US Army)
At the beginning of this month, China showed a number of his youngest weapons in a massive military parade in Beijing. The “robot wolves” were among the combat aircraft and goose.
According to the Chinese state media, these four -legged robots can fire precisely shots and work in rough terrain. They should help with complex and dangerous battlefield conditions to replace human soldiers to reduce fighter victims.
With a weight of 70 kg (154 lb), the wolves can achieve destinations that are up to 100 meters away, and Chinese media.
“They are suitable for urban education, violations or remote weapons, but are limited by battery life, endangered communication and small payloads,” said LT Col Matisek.
“Its value depends on robust sensors and secure networks, not only on the platform. A large part of your drone technology in every domain looks impressive for parades, but is still a niche on battlefield-at best for urban recon, not for open field fees.”
Robot covers are not a new concept – the USA tested its own versions, while Israel has experimented with unmanned combat systems from robots and military dogs in Gaza.
The production of mechanical animals cost thousands of pounds, but they can be as cheap as the robot dogs sold in China from Tech Company Unit Fire Robotics ($ 1,300 pounds).
“Fly Chernobyl”
The Burevestnik Nuclear-powered rocket, which NATO (Russian Ministry of Defense) referred to as Skyfall
Dozens of nations have advanced cruise rockets in their arsenal, but Russia claims to develop an “invincible” way that is armed, nuclear armed and apparently could revolve the earth for an indefinite period.
The 9m730 Bureevestnik-Name SSC-X-9 Skyfall from the NATO-Werd as a Subsonic cruise missile with a potential range of 23,000 km or more. Little is known about his skills, costs or how realistic they are, but it has attracted ridiculousness of western officials.
“Why would you have a nuclear, nuclear cruise missile for everything in the world? This is nothing more than a flying Chernobyl,” said Marshall Billingslea, a former envoy in US armaments control, in 2020.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the weapon was “invincible” for current and future rocket defenses and has an almost unlimited range and an unpredictable trajectory.
However, experts say that it is a little more complicated.
“The point about” an unpredictable trajectory “by Bureevestnik is that it is thanks to its nuclear drive The independent.
“Of course, assumes that these areas are known in advance and that the density of air defense is relatively low.”
High -performance microwaves
The tactical operational responder of the USA or a powerful microwave weapon that can deactivate a swarm of drones (US Air Force)
Several countries are testing new high -performance microwave weapons that can lose drone swarms.
They work by going out electromagnetic energy to deactivate the electronics of drones in flight.
The United States has tested various types of these weapons, including the tactical high-performance surgical operating responder (Thor), Leonidas and integrated fire protection skills high-performance microwave or IFPC HPM.
The production of high-performance microwaves can cost millions, with the first gate for around $ 18 million (£ 13 million) and subsequent models costs around $ 15 million for the production of around $ 15 million. According to Andy Lowery, the CEO of Epirus, the Leonidas system will have a purchase price of “between 10 and 20 million USD” per system, which was recorded in 2023 with several prototypes.
Great Britain also develops its own version called Rapiddestroyer.
During these technologies, namely performance requirements, limited reach and risks of electromagnetic disorders with friendly systems, there are still disadvantages in the experimental phase, so that LT Col Matisek.
“These will be of crucial importance for the defense of the airbasis and convoy defense against mass drone. Essentially, the microwaves are swarm-moller-a pulse can fry several drones,” he added.
“However, performance and their own electronics are the weak connections in this microwave killchain.”
Laser beams
The dragon fire’s laser weapon can hit air goals (Ministry of Defense)
Laser weapons are targeted energy systems that use light rays to damage or destroy goals and offer an inexpensive alternative to traditional ammunition.
The United Kingdom plans to fit four warships with the “most modern” Dragonfire Laser Weapon from 2027 to better protect the ships from rockets and drone attacks. Dragonfire rays can be a coin 1 km away and less than 10 GBP each costs the Ministry of Defense.
It is unclear how much each unit will cost, but its production was financed by a joint investment of 100 million GBP by the mod and the defense industry.
“It offers speed-of-light precision and deep magazines, but fight in fog, rain or smoke and requires considerable strength and cooling,” said LT Col Matisek.
“It will be a player for inexpensive drone defense under clear conditions, less in undesirable weather.
Countries such as the USA, China and Israel also develop their own laser weapons.
