Hanwha has teamed up with Estonia’s Milrem to jointly pursue Romania’s unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) program, marking a strategic step to diversify its footprint in the European defence market. The teaming agreement was signed on the second day of the Black Sea Defense & Aerospace (BSDA) 2026 exhibition in Bucharest by Hanwha Aerospace, its Romanian subsidiary Hanwha Aerospace Romania (HARO), and Milrem Robotics. The trilateral agreement establishes a collaborative framework to combine the companies’ respective strengths in wheeled and tracked unmanned systems, while supporting Romania’s requirement for localised production and industrial participation. Under the partnership, Hanwha Aerospace Romania is expected to serve as the prime contractor, providing wheeled UGV platforms based on Arion-SMET and its upgraded variant GRUNT, a high-mobility 6×6 platform designed for extended range, heavy payload, and modular mission adaptability. Milrem will contribute its combat-proven tracked UGV platform, THeMIS, recognised for its stability in rugged terrain, hybrid propulsion, and flexible integration of mission payloads.
Kuldar Väärsi, CEO of Milrem Robotics, said: “Milrem Robotics’ THeMIS is one of the first unmanned ground vehicles in Europe that has successfully entered series production. With two established manufacturing sites in Europe and extensive experience in technology transfer, we see strong potential to expand manufacturing capabilities to Romania in cooperation with Hanwha, while strengthening regional defence manufacturing capacity.”
Lino Lim, CEO of Hanwha Aerospace Romania, said: “We are pleased to mark this collaboration at BSDA 2026, which represents an important step in bringing advanced unmanned capabilities into Romania through localised production and industrial cooperation. By combining next-generation UGV technologies from the two companies, we aim to deliver a flexible and scalable solution tailored to Romania’s operational needs, while contributing to the development of its defence industrial base and strengthening European cooperation.”
The collaboration reflects a coordinated approach among leading defence manufacturers. It drives technology transfer and localised production in Romania, while reinforcing broader European industrial cooperation through advanced unmanned solutions tailored to local operational requirements. By integrating Milrem Robotics’ THeMIS — one of the world’s leading tracked UGV platforms — into Hanwha’s integrated UGV offering, the partners aim to establish a mutually beneficial structure that strengthens competitiveness in both the Romanian program and broader global markets. Meanwhile, Hanwha Aerospace and Milrem Robotics successfully conducted a live Manned-Unmanned Teaming (MUM-T) demonstration on May 12 near Bucharest ahead of BSDA 2026. The demonstration integrated Hanwha’s TIGON armoured vehicle, GRUNT unmanned ground vehicle, and Milrem’s THeMIS Cargo in a realistic battlefield scenario involving reconnaissance and surveillance missions, logistics resupply, casualty evacuation, and drone-enabled battlefield monitoring under simulated electronic warfare conditions. The live demonstration drew strong attention from Romanian military leadership and defence officials, underscoring the growing cooperation between Hanwha Aerospace and Milrem Robotics in advancing next-generation unmanned battlefield capabilities for the Romanian and broader European defence market.
Hanwha Aerospace is a leading provider of advanced defence, aerospace, and industrial solutions with a global footprint across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas. Its portfolio covers land, sea, air, and space domains, including artillery systems, armoured vehicles, precision-guided munitions, aircraft engines, satellites, and space launch technologies. As a core affiliate of Hanwha Group, Hanwha Aerospace is dedicated to strengthening global partnerships through localisation, co-production, and technology transfer.
Milrem Robotics is an Estonian defense technology company specializing in robotic and autonomous systems for military and security applications. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Tallinn, it develops modular, AI-enabled unmanned ground vehicles, used for reconnaissance, transport, and combat support. Its main production facility is in Tallinn, Estonia, capable of manufacturing over 500 THeMIS unmanned ground vehicle units per year. The company also operates R&D and engineering subsidiaries in Finland, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and the United States, focusing on design, testing, and regional support.
