Ukraine 'Could Double' Production Of Drones With Support From The West

Ukraine could make 2m drones a year - double the existing rate of production with extra financial support from the US, other western governments and private citizens, the country's minister for digital transformation has claimed.

- Dan Sabbagh

Mykhailo Fedorov said in an interview that Ukraine's government was "contracting much less than our manufacturers are capable of" because it did not have enough funds on hand. He pressed for further donations to help the war effort.

The 33-year-old digital minister, who is responsible for drone production, said Ukraine was on track to produce "more than a million" drones in 2024, which would exceed a im target for manufacture set by the president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, late last year, but could make even more.

"We've been able to scale the market so much that we can manufacture more than one or even two million drones," he said, arguing that there was potential to increase production of all types of drones further.

Ukraine has come under increasing pressure on the frontline in the two-year war as the US Congress refuses to give the green light to a $60bn (£47bn) military aid package, and has turned heavily to largely homegrown drone technology in response.