Ukraine and the UK signed an agreement to mass-produce drones effective against Shaheds, aiming for several thousand units monthly to strengthen defense capabilities.
The drones produced will be purchased by the Dutch side and delivered to the Ukrainian Defense Forces. This was reported by Zn.ua.
On December 1, Ukraine’s Minister of Defense, Denys Shmyhal, together with Dutch Minister of Defense, Ruben Brekelmans, signed an important agreement. According to Shmyhal, it opens the possibility for joint production of Ukrainian unmanned systems both in Ukraine and in the Netherlands.
Production is planned to be organized simultaneously in both countries. The drones produced will be purchased by the Dutch side and transferred to the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
“Together with our partners, Ukraine continues to expand the production of the most effective models of its weaponry,” the defense minister said.
Shmyhal also added that the Netherlands is allocating €250 million to the PURL initiative. He thanked the country and Minister Brekelmans for their consistent and long-term support of Ukraine.
In the summer, Ukraine signed an agreement with the American company Swift Beat on joint production of drones, including interceptors. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the plan involves hundreds of thousands of drones to be manufactured already this year, along with a significant expansion of production next year.
The Ukrainian company Bullet and the American AIRO Group Holdings, Inc. also plan to jointly launch serial production of high‑speed interceptor drones. It is stated that they will be capable of accelerating to 450 km/h, flying up to 200 km, and carrying 2.5–9 kg. The final signing of the agreement is expected soon, after which the companies will begin cooperation with Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and move on to contracting with the Pentagon, NATO, and other partners. Which specific interceptors will be produced has not yet been clarified.
At the end of November, representatives of the defense agencies of Ukraine and the United Kingdom also signed an agreement on the production of drones that have proven effective in countering Shaheds. The plan is to scale up production to several thousand units per month.
