NYT: Ukraine Has Achieved An Important Breakthrough
- 11.03.2026, 23:54
The Pentagon is considering cooperation.
Ukraine has achieved an important breakthrough and can now produce drones virtually without the use of Chinese components, The New York Times reported on Wednesday, March 11.
The commander of the Unmanned Systems Force, Maj. Robert Brovdi (Madyar), said drones account for more than 90 percent of casualties among the Russian occupiers.
The story said Ukraine is unlikely to start mass production of drones without Chinese components in the near future, as they are much cheaper, and it is hard to call any drone truly devoid of Chinese raw materials, given China's dominance in global production.
"However, Ukrainian officials believe it is important to produce drones with a minimum of components from China and to be able to continue producing them if supplies from China are cut off," the NYT writes.
Ukraine is one of many countries trying to reduce its dependence on Chinese component supplies, the newspaper notes.
"Given the risks associated with buying components from China, which is unfriendly to us, the main challenge is to produce them in Ukraine. The strength of the Ukrainian manufacturer lies in the fact that import substitution has already taken place," Madyar said.
Two Ukrainian companies producing drones without Chinese components were among 11 selected to compete for contracts under the Pentagon's "UAV superiority" program. The program calls for the purchase of thousands of low-cost strike UAVs.
One of those companies is Ukraine Defense Drones, which produces most of the components itself, with European suppliers covering most of the missing components. As the NYT notes, at the start of a full-scale war, almost all of Ukraine's UAVs were imported from China.
"As demand surged, Beijing imposed export restrictions in 2023 and expanded them in 2024. Although China officially remains neutral in the war, experts say Beijing has given its partner Russia preferential access to components that can still be exported," the newspaper recalls.
Ukraine used to buy some components through intermediaries, but gradually shifted its focus to producing its own UAVs and reduced the number of Chinese components in its drones. By 2024, the vast majority of drones on the frontline were assembled in Ukraine, but almost entirely from Chinese components. However, a year later, the share of Chinese components in Ukrainian UAVs had dropped to about 38%, the Ukrainian Defense Industry Council and the Snake Island think tank reported.
"Ukraine still buys cheaper Chinese components because the Ukrainian military needs a huge number of drones and the budget for their purchase is limited. The failure rate of missions involving drones is very high, which is another reason Ukraine is trying to cut costs," the NYT writes.
One unnamed Ukrainian official said that Ukrainian and Russian companies often buy components from the same factories in China, and Chinese executives "strictly adhere to the schedule of production sites so that Ukrainian and Russian buyers do not overlap."
NYT writes that Ukrainian Defense Drones (known under the brand name F-Drones) began manufacturing drones in 2023. At first, all components were Chinese-made, but within a year, the company established localized production of carbon fiber frames and antennas.
By 2025, the company expanded production to flight controllers, speed controllers, radio modems and video transmission systems. Later, the company also bought technology to produce cameras, which it hopes to manufacture in Europe. For now, Ukrainian Defense Drones is buying cameras from another Ukrainian company that imports components from Europe.
"Ukraine's goals are not limited to producing drones without Chinese components. Ukrainian designs are being updated monthly to reflect combat performance, contrasting with the slow pace of production of traditional weapons," the NYT adds.