Russia Sending Assault Robots to Aid Syrian Soldiers?

Russia is fielding assault robots alongside Syrian soldiers in the offensive against rebel militia.

The Russians are fielding two kinds of robots – the Platform-M combat robot and the Argo Mobility Platform, both heavily armored and capable of functioning day or night in a variety of battlefield conditions, DEBKAfile news daily reported Monday.

Platform-M gathers intelligence, uncovers fixed and moving targets and destroys them.  It also provides firepower support for forces on the move and secures military installations or routes traveled by the army.  Platform-M is armed with semiautomatic or automatic control firing systems for destroying enemy targets but extra fire power can be mounted on the system as required.

The Argo is designed for rough-country operations, especially on mountainous or rocky terrain. In recent battles, Syrian rebels were startled to find themselves under sudden heavy fire from the unmanned Russian robots.

Russian General Staff Chief Valery Gerasimov recently spoke of a plan to “completely automate the battle in Syria.” He added, “Perhaps soon we will witness robotic groups independently conducting warfare.” Our military sources comment that this vision is overly futuristic.

A substantial drop in Hizballah, Iranian and Syrian casualties in battle, contrary to reports of high casualties claimed in the Western mainstream press, Robots, novel replacements for boots on the ground, recently made their debut appearance in the Syrian arena. They are cast in a star role in the offensive for the recovery of Aleppo, the news website quoted military sources as saying.