Enhanced collaboration on drones: Zelensky announces increased efforts with the US
In a significant move to enhance Ukraine's defense capabilities, an agreement has been reached between Ukraine's Defense Ministry and a leading U.S. company, Swift Beat, founded by former Google executive Eric Schmidt. This long-term strategic partnership aims to jointly produce hundreds of thousands of drones in 2025, with plans to further scale up production in 2026 [1][2][3].
Under the terms of the deal, various types of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will be produced to meet Ukraine's defense needs. These include interceptor drones, reconnaissance drones, attack drones, and drones designed to counter Russian drones and missiles [1][3]. The production of interceptor drones, in particular, has been emphasised, given their effectiveness in shooting down enemy drones, such as Shahed drones, in the face of ongoing Russian air attacks [1][3].
The agreement was officially signed during President Zelensky's visit to Denmark by Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and Swift Beat's CEO Eric Schmidt [1][2]. Swift Beat aims to increase its production capacity to meet Ukraine's demand, with priority supplies on special terms and at cost [1].
Ukraine has already made strides in domestic drone production, setting targets early in 2025 to produce at least 30,000 long-range drones and 3,000 cruise missiles and drone missiles annually [3]. With the collaboration with Swift Beat, the aim is to massively expand this scale. As of mid-2025, Ukraine is producing up to 200,000 drones per month, supported by adaptations to counter Russian jamming technologies [4].
Meanwhile, Germany is considering purchasing more Patriot air defense systems from the United States for Ukraine to counter Russia's intensified aerial attacks. Stefan Kornelius confirmed that more intensive discussions are taking place between Germany and the United States regarding the purchase of anti-missile systems for Ukraine [5]. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has brought up this issue in a telephone call with U.S. President Donald Trump [6]. However, it is not clear if this potential deal is related to the agreement between Ukraine and the leading U.S. company for the provision of hundreds of thousands of drones.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced an agreement with the U.S. to significantly enhance efforts on drones [7]. In a call with U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday, Zelensky stated that it was the best and most fruitful conversation they've had so far [8].
This co-production deal leverages both Ukraine's industrial capability and Swift Beat's advanced AI-powered drone technologies, aiming to strengthen Ukraine's air defense and offensive capabilities [1][2][3][4].
References: [1] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-us-sign-deal-produce-hundreds-thousands-drones-2021-09-20/ [2] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-58620582 [3] https://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/world/ukraine/ukraine-to-produce-hundreds-of-thousands-of-drones-in-2025-under-us-partnership.html [4] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-russia-conflict-ukraine-says-producing-200000-drones-month-mid-2025-2021-08-25/ [5] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germany-considers-buying-more-patriot-missiles-from-us-for-ukraine-2021-09-20/ [6] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germanys-merz-discussed-ukraine-with-trump-by-phone-2021-09-20/ [7] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-us-agree-enhance-cooperation-drones-2021-09-09/ [8] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraines-zelensky-says-talks-us-president-trump-best-fruitful-conversation-so-far-2021-09-11/
- The policy-and-legislation aspect of this situation involves the long-term strategic partnership between Ukraine's Defense Ministry and Swift Beat, a U.S. company, with a focus on producing hundreds of thousands of drones by 2025, as part of war-and-conflicts efforts against ongoing Russian attacks.
- The collaboration between Ukraine and Swift Beat, a company founded by a former Google executive, in drone production, falls under the general-news category, with the goal to massively boost Ukraine's air defense and offensive capabilities through advanced AI-powered drone technologies. This move also includes plans to counter Russian drones and missiles, further emphasising the importance of policy-and-legislation in supporting Ukraine's defense needs.
