Robert Brovdi (call sign "Madyar"), commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, has become one of the key figures in the Russia-Ukraine war. Initially joining the front as a volunteer, Brovdi, a former businessman and grain trader, later became one of the first to use drones for reconnaissance and strike operations in the Ukrainian army, eventually receiving an appointment to command the armed forces' new branch of troops - drones. In a recent interview with Western media, Madyar stated that the depths of 1500-2000 kilometers into Russian territory are no longer the rear, but the battlefield.
Modern.az presents an article about Robert Brovdi, who has become one of Russia's main enemies.
Robert Brovdi is an ethnic Hungarian from Uzhhorod, a city in western Ukraine. His call sign "Madyar" directly indicates his Hungarian origin. Before the full-scale Russia-Ukraine war, Brovdi was a businessman. "Forbes Ukraine" notes that his name is well-known in business circles. Since the 1990s, he has been involved in entrepreneurship in various sectors, including trade, real estate, and the state agricultural sector. Companies associated with him were among Ukraine's five largest grain exporters.
Brovdi briefly headed "Khlib Investstroy," a company considered one of the most scandalous during Viktor Yanukovych's presidency. The businessman worked as a top manager at the State Food and Grain Corporation (SFGCU) during a period of active cooperation with China.
Under Brovdi's leadership, the company received a government-backed $1.5 billion loan from China but failed to fully meet its grain supply obligations. Due to SFGCU's financial collapse, the burden of repaying the loan fell on the state. "Slidstvo.Info" claimed that the grain was sold to Syria, Ethiopia, Iran, Singapore, and Hong Kong, including through the Swiss company "GrainTradingGroup," which was linked to Brovdi's acquaintance.
The businessman himself called his work at SFGCU "a short and interesting experience," which damaged his reputation. He told "Forbes" that "I saw some unnecessary bias there." He was not officially charged in this case.
Last year, blogger Volodymyr Boyko accused Brovdi of stealing $1.5 billion from the Chinese loan. Madyar responded by stating that he "had no connection with Chinese money [within the framework of this loan]." He refused to comment on the "absurd" and urged Ukrainians "not to adopt Goebbels' propaganda."
Brovdi also developed several development projects in his native Uzhhorod, but some of his initiatives in Zakarpattia were frozen with the start of the full-scale war. From 2010 to 2015, he was a member of the Zakarpattia Regional Council and the head of the local branch of Arseniy Yatsenyuk's centrist-liberal Front for Change party.
In addition to business, Brovdi was involved in philanthropy, cultural initiatives, and art collections. His BrovdiArt foundation supported Ukrainian artists and organized their exhibitions abroad.
Journalists who spoke with Brovdi said he currently works in a secret underground bunker equipped with the latest technology. The walls of this bunker are completely covered with screens broadcasting live footage from drone pilots on the battlefield. Brovdi's subordinates use these screens to verify and count enemy losses. The command post is also filled with missile casings and captured Russian drones.
Brovdi said to journalists, "Our plan is to kill more than 30,000 people a month. And we are exceeding this plan. One and a half to two thousand kilometers inside Russia is no longer a peaceful rear area. If oil refineries help Putin earn money for the war, then for us, they are legitimate military targets to be destroyed. If Putin thinks he can capture all of Donbas in a few months, what is he thinking? This is unrealistic. Absurd. Ukrainian drone operators have a direct order: kill more Russians than Russia can mobilize - that means 30,000 people a month. We have been exceeding our plan for four months now. The greatest mass killing of the enemy in human history is happening at our command center. If we don't kill them, they will kill us — that's obvious."
Brovdi volunteered for the Ukrainian Territorial Defense a few weeks before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He told the BBC that "Everyone understood that war was inevitable in one way or another." At the very beginning of the war, his unit was evacuating civilians from Irpin, Bucha, and Borodyanka.
According to Madyar, he first learned about the potential of drones after being shelled by Russia near Kherson. After that, he organized aerial reconnaissance of the front and in May 2022, created his own aerial reconnaissance unit. This unit became known as "Madyar's Birds." Its specialization is to use drones for reconnaissance, fire adjustment, strike operations, and supporting attacks.
During the war, "Madyar's Birds" under Brovdi's command grew from a small group of soldiers to a separate battalion. They participated in battles on the main fronts of Kyiv.
During the war, "Madyar's Birds" under Brovdi's command grew from a small group of soldiers to an entire battalion. They fought in the main sectors of the front in the Kyiv, Kherson, Donetsk, and Kharkiv regions, including battles for Soledar, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Staromayorsk, and Krynky.
In early 2024, the unit officially received the status of the 414th Unmanned Aerial Systems Battalion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Marine Corps. Brovdi became its commander. In May 2025, Volodymyr Zelensky awarded Madyar the title of Hero of Ukraine, and a month later appointed him commander of the unmanned systems forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Brovdi is considered one of the media-friendly commanders of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Madyar's Telegram channel, where he regularly shares videos of Ukrainian drones killing Russian soldiers and enemy losses are counted, has over 530,000 subscribers.
According to the commander, the Unmanned Systems Forces make up only 2% of the Ukrainian army but "destroy approximately one-third of all targets." Brovdi estimated the casualty rate within the armed forces at less than 1% per year.
In an interview with the BBC, he stated that Ukrainian drone operators have a direct order to kill more Russian soldiers than the Kremlin's army can mobilize - that is, more than 30,000 people per month.
"The target for manpower accounts for 30% of all targets hit by the Unmanned Systems Forces," Brovdi said. "Currently, the group is pushing this target from 30% to 34%. In fact, 34% of all targets are enemy manpower." He claimed that these targets have been achieved for the fourth consecutive month.
Brovdi regularly reports on drone strikes against targets inside Russia, including oil refineries and "Druzhba" pipeline infrastructure. In late April, Ukrainian drones carried out a series of attacks in the Urals. The Ukrainian Security Service claimed to have organized drone attacks on oil infrastructure in Perm. However, Brovdi claimed that his units were responsible for the drone attack in Chelyabinsk. He also wrote on his channel about Ukraine's attacks on Tuapse.
Against the backdrop of Ukraine's strikes on the "Druzhba" pipeline and the cessation of Russian oil supplies to Hungary, Budapest banned "Madyar" from entering the country.
In Russia, "Madyar" was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment. In March 2026, the court found him guilty of organizing a terrorist act that led to the death of Channel One correspondent Anna Prokofyeva. In total, Russian authorities accuse Brovdi of 46 crimes, including "terrorist acts causing civilian deaths and significant material damage."
