Ukraine ready to conclude drone defense deal with US — CBS News
Ukraine is ready to sign an agreement with the United States in the field of drone defense. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy may do so this week in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, though the final formalization of the arrangement may be postponed until a later date, when the US side is ready to sign.
This was reported by CBS News, citing three informed sources. According to the outlet, the US and Ukrainian defense ministries have spent the past year developing a framework mechanism that would allow the militaries of the two countries to expand testing and production of Ukrainian defense technologies in the United States.
Cooperation in drone production
Sources familiar with the details of the agreement say that the future arrangement will not be limited to contracts for individual Ukrainian manufacturers. It is intended to create a broader mechanism for direct cooperation between leading Ukrainian defense companies and US partners and the US military.
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Ukraine has also concluded defense arrangements with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. These agreements combine foreign financing with Ukrainian defense production. Zelenskyy has said that Ukraine aims to manufacture 10 million drones this year. By comparison, the US Army purchased about 50,000 unmanned aircraft in 2025, former US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll noted.
Technology and combat experience
According to Deborah Fairlamb, founder of investment company Green Flag Ventures, Ukraine's advantage lies not only in the drones themselves, but also in the software, operators and teams that constantly adapt these technologies. She stressed that effective drone use requires coordination, operational planning, an understanding of the environment and communication between operators.
CBS News also reported that the US company Perennial Autonomy supplied the US military with Merops interceptor drones and Bumblebee reconnaissance-strike unmanned aircraft for the Middle East. Merops uses artificial intelligence beacons from Ukrainian company Sine Engineering and Ukrainian warheads. According to the outlet's sources, integrating the drones with US air defense radars, with the involvement of Ukrainian specialists, was required to put them into service.
