The Ukraine–United States cooperation agreement in the field of unmanned systems, known as the Drone Deal, has moved to the practical stage: it is now the American side that must decide which specific Ukrainian drones it is interested in testing on its own territory. This was stated by Pavlo Palisa, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, during a meeting with journalists, as reported by RBC-Ukraine and Interfax.
Person in Charge and Current Stage
According to Palisa, Rustem Umerov is responsible for implementing the Drone Deal on the Ukrainian side. The Deputy Head of the Office of the President emphasized that the process has now effectively shifted to the plane of American decisions: "At present, as far as I am aware given my involvement in the process, the ball is in the court of the United States." Thus, Kyiv considers that it has fulfilled its part of the agreement by handing Washington the tools to select the samples.
Competitive Selection and Testing of Samples
In Palisa's words, the Ukrainian side has given the Americans the opportunity to select the types of drones they are interested in on a competitive basis. Various manufacturers have been given the chance to submit their samples to the United States, where they undergo testing. "They were given the opportunity to select certain types of drones they are interested in on a competitive basis. They are testing them," he explained. After the trials, the American side is to decide which specific unmanned aerial vehicles will fall within the scope of the cooperation.
Factory in the US and Strategic Context
The context of the agreement was outlined earlier: at the end of July, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Kyiv and Washington were close to concluding the Drone Deal. According to him, the document provides for cooperation in the production of drones, as well as the construction of a large factory on US territory. This turns the deal from a simple supply of equipment into a long-term production partnership that could also affect the US defense industry market.
Broader: A Network of International Drone Deals
The agreement with the United States is not an isolated case. As noted in the provided materials, Ukraine has already concluded nine agreements in the Drone Deal format, with around 15 more international contracts in progress. In parallel, according to business media, the European Union is developing the initiative in a similar format, indicating the formation of an entire network of bilateral and multilateral partnerships around Ukrainian drone production.
