Ukraine Is Ready To Sign A Major Agreement With The U.S. On The Supply Of Drones
- 23.09.2026, 20:06
CBS News revealed the details.
Ukraine is ready to sign a major agreement with the U.S. in the field of unmanned defense, known as the “drone deal.” This was reported by CBS News citing three sources familiar with the situation.
According to them, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is ready to sign the agreement as early as this week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, although the final formalities may take place later—when the U.S. side is ready.
According to CBS News, the Pentagon, in collaboration with the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, has developed a mechanism over the past year that will allow for the expansion of testing and production of Ukrainian defense equipment on U.S. soil.
The need to deepen this cooperation has become particularly evident against the backdrop of the war with Iran: when Tehran began striking U.S. bases in the Middle East using Shahed drones, and the U.S. and Gulf states lacked affordable interceptor capabilities, Kyiv deployed its own interceptors and pilots.
Since then, Ukraine has signed similar defense agreements with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE. According to Zelenskyy, Ukraine plans to produce 10 million drones this year—by comparison, the U.S. Army will have purchased only about 50,000 by 2025, according to former U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll.
Experts interviewed by CBS News emphasize that the value of Ukraine’s experience lies not only in the drones themselves, but also in the software and the operators who are constantly adapting the technology.
“The West needs to understand: what matters isn’t the presence of the equipment, but exactly how it’s used. It’s not a rifle that you simply aim and fire,” explained Deborah Fairlamb, founder of Green Flag Ventures.
According to exclusive CBS News reports, in March, when Iran was launching retaliatory strikes in response to attacks by the U.S. and Israel, Driscoll, who was serving as Secretary of the Army at the time, asked Eric Schmidt’s company, Perennial Autonomy, to urgently deliver 13,000 Merops interceptors and 10,000 Bumblebee drones to the Middle East.
The equipment was shipped within a few days, but it did not become operational until several weeks later due to delays in Ukrainian components—specifically, AI beacons from Sine Engineering—and the integration of the drones into air defense systems required the expertise of Ukrainian specialists.
CBS News reached out to the White House and the Pentagon for comment on the status of the drone deal.
The Drone Deal is a multi-year cooperation program between Ukraine and other countries in the field of defense technology, a new key partnership framework through which Ukraine receives long-term annual funding for its defense-industrial complex, while partners gain access to cutting-edge Ukrainian defense technologies.
The format provides for both the immediate export of battle-tested Ukrainian weapons and the development of cooperation between companies in Ukraine’s defense technology sector (MilTech) and corresponding companies in partner countries.