Ukraine conflict: Milrem expects to deliver over 150 THeMIS UGVs for Ukrainian army by end of 2026

THeMIS UGVs at the company's production facility in Tallin on 23 September 2026. (Janes/Nicholas Fiorenza)

Milrem Robotics expects deliveries of over 150 THeMIS unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) to Ukraine by the end of 2026, Gert Hankewitz, the Estonian company's director of marketing and communications, told international journalists including from Janes visiting the company's facility in Tallinn on 23 September 2026.

This includes 100 UGVs being assembled by VDL Defentec in Born, the Netherlands. The THeMIS deliveries to Ukraine are partly funded and coordinated by the Netherlands.

Milrem gave a tour of its facility in Tallinn, where THeMIS UGVs could be seen in various stages of production but painted in sand colour for a country the company declined to identify. The facility is producing one THeMIS UGV a day, but this can be ramped up to 500 a year, according to Milrem.

Hankewitz said the fire caused by an arson attack on Milrem on 18 August did not affect production. One end of the building affected is adjacent to the perimeter fence of the Milrem facility in Tallin. It is not a production hall and no damage was visible from the outside. Raul Rikk, Milrem's capability development director, said there was fire and damage but that the company could meet customer requirements and was reinforcing security. He added that Milrem had created a product worthwhile to attack.

Eesti Rahvusringhääling (Estonian Public Broadcasting, ERR) reported on 23 September that three suspects in the arson attack had been extradited to Estonia the previous week and remanded in custody. They were questioned by Estonia's Internal Security Service and then brought before Harju County Court, where a judge upheld the decision to take them into custody based on evidence gathered so far, according to ERR.