European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the formation of a new alliance with Ukraine focused on joint drone production. She introduced the initiative during a speech at the European Parliament session in Strasbourg, France. According to her, the European Union will allocate €6 billion (around $7 billion) to the project. Funding will take the form of a loan, which is expected to be repaid later using interest income generated from frozen Russian assets.
“We can leverage our industrial capacity to support Ukraine in this drone-focused conflict,” she said. “We can help turn Ukrainian ingenuity into an advantage on the battlefield – and into joint industrial development. That is why I can also announce that Europe will provide €6 billion from the ERA loan and enter into an agreement with Ukraine to establish the Drone Alliance.”
Von der Leyen emphasized that Ukraine has significant potential in technology and development, but scaling up production is essential for achieving an advantage. “Ukraine has ingenuity. What it currently lacks is scale. Together, we can provide that scale, allowing Ukraine to maintain its edge while Europe strengthens its own security,” she told European lawmakers.
She also noted that over two-thirds of Russian equipment losses on the battlefield have been caused by Ukrainian drones. At the same time, Russia is actively trying to catch up in this area, leveraging its industrial base and gaining an additional advantage through the mass production of Shahed drones developed in Iran. Recently, Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) released a list of another hundred foreign components found in Russian drones and missiles.
Von der Leyen has not yet provided details on how the new “Drone Alliance” will operate. However, the concept of such a partnership has been under discussion within the European Union for several months, with Denmark playing a particularly active role. The country advocates for situating the production of Ukrainian military equipment within the EU. Under this model, Ukrainian companies would be able to organize manufacturing more securely, as facilities in Ukraine remain at constant risk from Russian missile strikes. In the event of an attack on production sites in Denmark, Russia would face the risk of a direct NATO response.
As a reminder, we recently reported that Ukrainian company Fire Point, which produces drones and missiles, is preparing to start manufacturing solid rocket fuel in Denmark. This would be the first known instance of a Ukrainian defense company setting up production within the country. Meanwhile, Ukrainian drone manufacturer Ukrspecsystems plans to build a new 11,000 m² facility in the UK town of Mildenhall, along with a testing range and a training center in Elmswell, Suffolk.
Read also:
- Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones That Violated Its Airspace for the First Time
- Ukraine Deploys Swarms of Autonomous Drones: AI Is Changing the Battlefield
Source: yahoo
