Ukraine Prepares up to $30 Billion Drone Sale to US, Zelenskyy Says

The deal would capitalize on Ukraine’s drone technology, developed and tested on the battlefield amid the ongoing war with Russia.

A Ukrainian serviceman flies a drone on the outskirts of Bakhmut, Ukraine, on Dec. 30, 2022. Sameer A-Doumy/AFP via Getty Images

Ukraine is drafting a contract for the sale of $10 billion to $30 billion worth of drones to the United States, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.

Speaking to reporters on July 24, Zelenskyy said the deal stems from preliminary agreements made with U.S. President Donald Trump.

“With America, with President Trump, we agreed that they will buy drones from us. That’s the agreement,” the Ukrainian leader said, as reported by Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform. “It’s very important to prepare this contract—a serious contract worth $10 to 20 to 30 billion.”

Zelenskyy said he has tasked Ukrainian National Security Secretary Rustem Umerov, Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal, and adviser Oleksandr Kamyshin with creating the contract.

In addition to the proposed sale, Ukraine is also expanding drone production abroad.

According to Zelenskyy, a new agreement has been signed with Denmark for the joint production of long-range drones in the Nordic country. Some of these drones will be deployed into Ukraine’s war with Russia, he said, and the rest will go to the Danish military. He said similar partnerships are being discussed with Norway and Germany.

The Epoch Times reached out to the U.S. Departments of State and Defense for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

Zelenskyy’s announcement follows his earlier interview with the New York Post, in which he revealed that he and Trump were in talks for a “mega deal“ that would involve the United States purchasing Ukrainian drones in exchange for Kyiv buying American-made weapons.

The deal would capitalize on Ukraine’s drone technology, developed and repeatedly tested on the battlefield during the ongoing war with Russia, now in its third year.

“The people of America need this technology, and you need to have it in your arsenal,” Zelenskyy told the New York Post.

Drones have become a vital component of the Russia–Ukraine conflict. While the full-scale war began in February 2022 with a traditional combined air and ground assault, it has since evolved into a drone-powered standoff. With both sides lacking the manpower and materiel for a decisive breakthrough, they rely on deploying hundreds of small, inexpensive drones on a daily basis to gather intelligence and target each other’s much larger and more expensive equipment.

For Russia, relentless drone bombardment of Ukrainian cities and key infrastructure is now a hallmark of its strategy. Ukraine has also showcased its growing offensive drone capabilities, most notably with last month’s “Operation Spiderweb,” in which Kyiv claimed to have carried out a covert, coordinated 117-drone strike on five Russian airbases spreading across more than 2,000 miles and destroyed 41 warplanes, including a Tu-95 strategic bomber.

The use of drones is widely expected to play an even more critical role in future warfare. Experts have warned that both state and non-state actors around the world are increasingly turning to low-cost, high-impact drones to achieve their strategic and battlefield goals, and that the United States risks losing its military edge if it does not follow suit.

Resonating with these concerns, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth issued a directive on July 10 to accelerate domestic drone production and reduce bureaucratic red tape.

In the memo, Hegseth called drones the “biggest battlefield innovation in a generation,” emphasizing that the U.S. military must keep pace as global military drone production has skyrocketed. He also urged all branches of the military to train their service members in drone operations.

“We were brought here to rebuild the military and match capabilities to the threats of today,” Hegseth said in a video message released this month. “While our adversaries have produced millions of cheap drones ... we were mired in bureaucratic red tape. Not anymore.”