Ukraine's defense and digital ministries contract 1.8 million drones for military

For 2024-2025, the Ministry of Defense, in cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, has contracted 1.8 million drones for nearly 147 billion UAH ($3.55 billion).

According to their data, in the first 10 months of 2024, the two ministries contracted 1.6 million drones of various types for over 114 billion UAH ($2.76 billion). Suppliers have already delivered 1.28 million UAVs worth over 81 billion UAH ($1.96 billion), and an additional 366,940 drones are scheduled for delivery by year-end.

The range includes models for diverse battlefield functions: deep-strike kamikaze drones, FPV kamikaze drones, reconnaissance copters like the DJI Mavic, reconnaissance airplanes and winged drones, strike copters and fixed-wing drones.

The Defense Ministry noted that this broad functional specification of drones provides "reliable support to combat units, aiding faster responses to tactical and strategic challenges."

For 2025, the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Digital Transformation have already contracted 155,205 drones for 32.33 billion UAH ($781.5 million), covering all primary types, including deep-strike and FPV kamikaze drones and reconnaissance UAVs, which will expand the military's technical capabilities on the front lines.

Overall, the two ministries have signed contracts to deliver 1.8 million drones for nearly 147 billion UAH ($3.55 billion) across 2024-2025.

Separate contracts are also being executed by other branches of the Defense Forces (Ministry of Internal Affairs, Police, National Guard, and Security Service of Ukraine), while individual military units and volunteer organizations also procure drones directly, the Defense Ministry concluded.