---
title: "52 lots outside Prozorro: UAV manufacturers accuse the Defense Procurement Agency of corruption risks in drone procurement"
description: "On August 20, 2026, the DPA emailed 52 UAV procurement lots outside Prozorro, allowing only 4 days for preparation instead of 6. The industry sees corruption risks, while the Anti-Corruption Council at the Ministry of Defense speaks only of \"signs of instability.\""
date: 2026-08-28T12:44:01.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/dpa-dot-uav-procurement-outside-prozorro-corruption-risks
tags: [ukraine-defense-procurement, uav-drone, prozorro, corruption-risk, defense-industry, aoz-dot, military-tenders]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# 52 lots outside Prozorro: UAV manufacturers accuse the Defense Procurement Agency of corruption risks in drone procurement

![Ready-to-fly unmanned aerial vehicles at a manufacturer's warehouse: drones whose procurement outside Prozorro triggered corruption-risk accusations](https://xab.info/media/2026/08/28/aoz-dot-zakupki-bpla-vo-prozorro-korrupcionnye-riski/aoz-dot-zakupki-bpla-vo-prozorro-korrupcionnye-riski-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- On August 20, 2026, the DPA sent a request for 52 equipment lots outside the Prozorro system, setting a submission deadline of 4 business days instead of the 6 provided for by law
- The procurement method — emailing proposals — is absent from the exhaustive list of defense procurement methods under Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1275
- Some key TTX (flight altitude, cruise speed, takeoff weight) had not been determined at the time of the request, and the qualification criteria for participants are absent
- The Anti-Corruption Council at the Ministry of Defense (Y. Hudyomenko) states that no direct evidence of violations has been found, but acknowledges "signs of instability"
- The industry warns: the drone tender has been conducted, but procurement of ammunition for UAVs has still not been launched

On August 20, 2026, the Defense Procurement Agency (DPA) sent weapons manufacturers a request for commercial proposals covering 52 equipment lots — including strike and reconnaissance-strike unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) equipped with a fiber-optic communications module. The documentation was emailed to a limited circle of companies, without any announcement published in the Prozorro electronic system and without an electronic auction being held. The deadline for preparing and submitting proposals was four business days — until August 26 — whereas Article 25 of Ukraine's Law "On Defense Procurement" provides for a minimum of six business days. According to RBC-Ukraine sources in the defense industry, it was precisely these circumstances that prompted accusations of possible tailoring of the tender conditions to a specific manufacturer and the creation of corruption risks.

### A procurement method that does not exist in the law

The industry's key complaint is that emailing commercial proposals is not included in the exhaustive list of defense procurement methods established by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1275. Under this document, only open tenders, simplified procurements, the electronic catalog, or a framework agreement are legitimate. An RBC-Ukraine source emphasizes that such practice deprives procurement participants of the right to appeal conditions and request clarifications, as provided for by the Law "On Public Procurement." At the same time, according to the outlet's interlocutor, the DPA and the Ministry of Defense already have experience with transparent competitive procurement in this area: preliminary UAV procurements were conducted through a specially developed module on the Prozorro platform in the form of a closed framework agreement. In effect, the source notes, the agency has departed from the procedure it had previously established.

### Signs of tailoring and undefined TTX

Beyond the procurement method itself, the source points to a number of alarming details. Some of the key tactical-technical characteristics — flight altitude, cruise speed, takeoff weight — had not been determined at the time the request was sent. The qualification criteria for tender participants, according to the interlocutor, are entirely absent. In the industry's view, the combination of undefined TTX, compressed deadlines, and a closed format creates conditions under which a company that already knows in advance which parameters will be embedded in the final document can win the procurement. At the same time, the source highlights a positive element: the DPA provided for a cap — no more than 50% of a lot to a single supplier — which formally broadens the pool of potential suppliers.

### Pause in contracting and the threat of a shortage

The problem with UAV procurement did not arise out of thin air. Igor Fedirko, Executive Director of the Ukrainian Council of Armament Manufacturers, was the first to publicly warn of the risk of supply disruption due to a prolonged pause in tender contracting. According to him, the Ministry of Defense moved from direct contracts to competitive tenders, but the DPA physically could not announce procurements without approved tactical-technical characteristics, which were supposed to be prepared by centers of competence that had been formed as early as February 2026. Those centers were never created, and the industry waited months for the TTX. Given the long production cycle, manufacturers warned that the pause in contracting threatened a weapons shortage for the army within six months, and that a critical situation could arise even sooner — within a few months. The situation only began to move after the Ministry of Defense approved the overwhelming majority of the TTX and handed them over to launch the procurements — this happened after a roughly three-hour meeting with manufacturers' representatives, the first of its kind in nearly six months.

### The Anti-Corruption Council's position: no violations, but "signs of instability"

Yuri Hudyomenko, Chair of the Anti-Corruption Council at the Ministry of Defense, commented on the situation in restrained terms. According to him, no direct evidence of violations by the DPA has been identified to date. At the same time, as he acknowledged, a new wave of appeals from manufacturers began after the tenders were launched — this time over the conditions of the announced procurements. Hudyomenko noted the presence of "signs of instability" in the procedure but did not classify them as corruption. Thus, the agency's official position remains halfway between "everything is in order" and "there are systemic problems that require attention."

### The broader context: drones without ammunition and missing tenders

The UAV problem is only the visible part of a deeper crisis in defense procurement. Another RBC-Ukraine source from the industry notes that, prior to the meeting with the Ministry of Defense, one of the main complaints had been precisely the absence of centers of competence. Moreover, according to him, tenders for critically important items have still not been conducted: ground robotic systems, various types of FPV drones, "deep strike" systems, and ammunition of all types and calibers for UAVs. The source states the problem plainly: you can procure as many drones as you like, but without the ammunition to equip them with, it remains a wasted resource. At the time of publication, the drone tender had been conducted, but the ammunition issue remained unresolved. The photographs accompanying the publication show finished multi-rotor unmanned systems stacked on cardboard boxes marked "Lviv postal" — a clear indication that production is underway, while the supply channels to the front line remain vulnerable.

### Contradictory data

The sources presented contain significant discrepancies in their assessment of what is happening. On the one hand, industry sources and the Ukrainian Council of Armament Manufacturers speak of specific procedural violations: the procurement method outside Prozorro is not provided for in Resolution No. 1275, the deadlines are halved, the TTX are undefined, and the qualification criteria are absent. On the other hand, the Anti-Corruption Council at the Ministry of Defense, headed by Yuri Hudyomenko, states outright that "there is no direct evidence of violations yet" and limits itself to noting "signs of instability." Thus, one side sees in the DPA's actions a systematic tailoring of conditions to a specific supplier, while the other sees temporary procedural rough edges that do not exceed the agency's lawful authority. Resolving this contradiction will, most likely, require either an independent review or a public explanation from the DPA of the exact legal basis on which the procurement was conducted in bypass of Prozorro.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Industry reports on defense procurement outside Prozorro: is there corruption and violations](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/galuzi-zayavlyayut-oboronni-zakupivli-poza-1787918418.html) - Основной источник фактов: дата 20.08.2026, 52 лота, способ e-mail, срок 4 дня, отсутствие ТТХ, цитаты И. Федирко и Ю. Гудыменко. Обвинения в коррупции основаны на анонимном источнике и не подтверждены независимым расследованием.
- ["Prozorro'd" wars. Honest Prozorro Market procurements remain behind a new "barrier"](https://zn.ua/reforms/prozorrjani-vojny-chestnye-zakupki-prozorro-market-ostalis-za-novym-shlahbaumom.html) - Контекстный источник о системных проблемах Prozorro в оборонных закупках. Не содержит прямых данных по конкретному тендеру от 20.08.2026, но подтверждает общую тенденцию к обходу электронной платформы.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: What exactly is the DPA procuring under the 52 lots?
**A:** Among the 52 lots are strike and reconnaissance-strike UAVs with a fiber-optic communications module, as well as other military equipment. Some of the key tactical-technical characteristics had not been determined at the time the request was sent.

### Q: Why is procurement outside Prozorro considered problematic?
**A:** Emailing commercial proposals is not included in the exhaustive list of defense procurement methods established by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1275. This deprives participants of the right to appeal and request clarification of conditions, as provided for by the Law "On Public Procurement."

### Q: Are there confirmed facts of corruption?
**A:** No. Yuri Hudyomenko, Chair of the Anti-Corruption Council at the Ministry of Defense, stated that no direct evidence of violations has been identified to date. Industry sources speak of "signs" of tailoring of conditions, but not of proven facts.

### Q: What deadline did the DPA set for submitting proposals, and why does this draw complaints?
**A:** The DPA set a deadline of four business days (until August 26). Article 25 of the Law "On Defense Procurement" provides for a minimum of six business days, making the set deadline half the regulatory norm.

### Q: What is happening with the procurement of ammunition for UAVs?
**A:** According to industry sources, tenders for ammunition of all types and calibers for unmanned vehicles have still not been conducted. The source emphasizes that without ammunition, the procured drones cannot be used for their intended purpose.