At first sight, it seems to be a horrifying prediction of a future war: a grenade launcher-equipped robotic attack dog built to track down and destroy tanks.
A closer look reveals that the new “weapon,” which was shown at the Russian Army-2022 defence exhibition in Moscow, is really a Chinese “house assistant” that anybody can purchase online for as low as £2,500.
The dog’s intended purpose is to accompany a human partner about like a pet, not to blow up highly armoured vehicles. It can carry relatively modest payload of up to 7lbs, which is around the weight of an empty grenade launcher.
The RPG-26 launcher that the dog is shown carrying weights around 10 pounds when loaded; this is too much for the animal to manage.
The peculiar pair of black “pyjamas” the dog was sporting when its “designers” displayed it to state media on Monday provided the key to the creature’s identification.
The clothing seems to be intended to deceive onlookers into believing it is brand-new rather than serving as camouflage.
The robot’s hexagonal head and the placement of two camera eyes that peered out of a slit in the front, according to online sleuths, betrayed the truth.
They think the robot is really a “Go1” Yushu Technology Dog made by the business Unitree.
The dog can be purchased for about £2,500 and £3,000 according to advertisements on AliExpress, a Chinese online retailer comparable to Amazon.
According to The Insider, a company named Robosobaka, which has connections to both the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Emergencies, sells the Go1 in Russia.
The dog cannot navigate rainy or muddy terrain since it lacks enough water or dirt protection, cannot handle uneven ground, and should only be walked in “sunny weather,” according to Robosobaka.
Its battery is just big enough to operate for two hours, and often even less—according to customer evaluations on Chinese websites.
The dog’s Russian “designers” claimed that it could aim and fire the grenade launcher strapped to its back, but it doesn’t seem plausible.
The inventors of the “weapon system,” known as M-81, told state media on Monday that it may be used for “target identification, patrolling, and security.”
Even these basic assertions, however, don’t appear likely to hold up under inspection given that the dog requires a person to operate.
However, Vladimir Putin boasted on Monday that Russia had weapons that are “decades” ahead of its competitors and promised to transfer such weapons to allies in Asia, Africa, and South America.
At the expo’s opening ceremony, Putin declared: “(We) are ready to supply our friends the most current kinds of armaments, from small arms to armoured vehicles and artillery to combat aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles.”
Nearly all of them have participated in many actual combat missions.
It seems that Putin was alluding to the conflict in Ukraine in his statement. While certain Russian weaponry, like its thermobaric missile launcher, have been utilised to deadly effect in the nation, others have been shown to be woefully deficient.
US and European anti-tank missiles have found it relatively simple to destroy Moscow’s mainstay T-72 tanks, while the S-400 anti-air system has mainly failed to thwart strikes by American HIMARS rockets.
A Russian submarine manufacturer also showed a brand-new design for a nuclear stealth sub at the defence exhibition.
The submarine, which was given the name “Arcturus” after the brightest star in the northern hemisphere, can accommodate up to 12 nuclear-tipped missiles and has four torpedo tubes installed in its nose.
Analysis by Covert Shores indicates that it also seems to be outfitted with at least two underwater drones that can “sniff” out enemy submarines using sensors that follow traces of chemicals or radiation left in the water by their engines.
Arcturus’s sleek exterior also gives the impression that it was built with stealth in mind. The sub, however, is not under production and seems to be just an idea.
Following Moscow’s announcement that it will leave the International Space Station (ISS) and construct its own space station, Roscosmos utilised the exhibition to reveal the concept for a new space station.
According to Roscosmos, the projected space station, known as “ROSS” by Russian official media, will be launched in two stages but did not provide a date for each launch.
A four-module space station would start functioning in the first phase. It said that two more modules and a service platform will be added later.
When finished, the two modules will be large enough to hold scientific equipment and up to four cosmonauts.
Russian cosmonauts would get a significantly broader view of the Earth from the new station than they do from their existing portion, according to Roskosmos.
Although plans for some of the new station’s components are practically complete, other elements are still undergoing design.
According to state-run Russian media, the first stage’s launch is anticipated to occur between 2025 and 2026 and no later than 2030. They have said that the second and final stage’s launch is scheduled for 2030–35.
According to current plans, the space station would be manned twice a year for lengthy durations instead of being manned permanently.
The former director of Roskosmos and hardliner Dmitry Rogozin has said that, if required, the new space station may have a military function. Rogozin is well known for his harsh words against the West.