Poland, Lithuania, and France are conducting large-scale military exercises Brave Boar 26 near the Suwałki Gap – a strategic area connecting the Baltic states with the rest of NATO territory. One of the main features of the maneuvers is the use of Polish unmanned ground robots GOBLIN, which are practicing reconnaissance and evacuation of wounded in combat conditions. This is reported by UNN citing Defense Blog.
Details
About 6,500 military personnel and several hundred units of equipment are taking part in the exercises, including Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles, Krab self-propelled howitzers, tanks, artillery, and drones. The scenarios practice the defense of the 65-kilometer Suwałki Gap, which NATO considers one of the most vulnerable directions in the event of a potential conflict with Russia.
Polish robotic platforms GOBLIN, developed by Macro-System, perform the most risky tasks – conducting reconnaissance under enemy fire and evacuating wounded from dangerous zones. According to the developers' concept, such systems are intended to reduce personnel losses and complement the capabilities of the military during modern combat operations.
Robots are being tested at the most vulnerable point of NATO's eastern flank
Defense Blog notes that testing GOBLIN specifically in the Suwałki Gap area allows assessing their effectiveness in real terrain conditions where combat operations could unfold in the event of war. Poland is actively investing in the development of unmanned ground systems as part of a large-scale modernization of its armed forces and strengthening of NATO's eastern flank.