From Hypersonic Missiles to AI and Drones... The Battlefield Becomes a Proving Ground for New Weapons

New Weapons Debut on the Battlefields of Ukraine and the Middle East
Oreshenik, GBU-57 Unveiled in Combat for the First Time
Pope: "Autonomous Weapons Have Surpassed Human Control"

Recently, as armed conflicts have intensified in Europe and the Middle East, the battlefield is increasingly being likened to a proving ground for new weaponry.

On the 24th (local time), amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, a resident is sitting at the site of missile and drone attacks in Kyiv. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

According to Yonhap News and the Associated Press on the 25th (local time), Russia fired the Oreshenik missile at the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, as retaliation for Ukraine's drone strike on a university dormitory in an occupied territory the previous day. The Oreshenik, which means "hazel tree," is Russia's hypersonic medium-range ballistic missile capable of carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads.

Russia first unveiled the Oreshenik in 2024 after Ukraine struck Russian territory with long-range Western missiles such as ATACMS. The missile can be equipped with multiple nuclear warheads and is reportedly capable of striking targets up to 5,000 kilometers away. To date, the Oreshenik has been launched three times. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated during the first launch that he would "continue to test the Oreshenik, including in actual combat, depending on the situation and nature of security threats."

Ukraine, on the other hand, has secured world-class drone technology over more than four years of war. Its long-range drones can strike oil facilities located 1,500 kilometers deep inside Russian territory. Previously, the Ukrainian military also reported that drones capable of being remotely operated from several thousand kilometers away to hit targets are about to be deployed in combat.

Ukraine's drone technology has begun to draw attention as Gulf states have come under attack from Iranian drones amid the recent Middle East crisis. Last month, the United States deployed Ukraine's command and control platform at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia to defend against Iranian drones.

Meanwhile, the GBU-57 "bunker buster," used for the first time in the field by the U.S. in the "Midnight Hammer" operation last June to destroy three of Iran's key nuclear facilities, is also a newly unveiled weapon. The GBU-57 is a massive bomb measuring 20.5 feet (about 6.2 meters) in length and weighing 30,000 pounds (about 13.6 tons).

The term "bunker buster" refers to an air-dropped, super-large penetrating bomb (MOP) designed to burrow deep underground before detonating. Among these, the GBU-57 is the latest model currently public, known to be ten times more powerful than its predecessor, the BLU-109. According to the U.S. military, it can penetrate approximately 60 meters (200 feet) underground to precisely strike bunkers and tunnels.

Photo to aid understanding of the article showing participants of the Ukraine Drone Competition. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News Agency

Recently, the development of new weaponry has been led by advancements in AI and robotics. Last April, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky introduced an example where territory lost to Russia was recaptured using only robots and drones. In response, Russia has developed an AI-powered acoustic drone detection system.

Behind this rapidly advancing competition in new weapons, driven by real-world testing, lies the grim reality of hundreds of thousands of casualties. According to estimates by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), nearly 2 million people on both sides have been killed or injured in the four years since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 through February of this year.

Meanwhile, Pope Leo XIV, in his newly released encyclical "Magnifica Humanitas" ("Solemn Humanity") on this day, likened new technologies such as AI to a "new Tower of Babel" symbolizing human arrogance. The Pope expressed concern, stating, "Increasingly autonomous weapon systems have in fact surpassed the range of effective human control."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.