Over the past three years, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has been and remains the largest purchaser of drones in Ukraine. The number of unmanned aerial vehicles supplied to the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has significantly increased.
"In 2023, the Ministry of Defense purchased thousands of drones, but by the end of 2024, together with the State Service for Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine, we acquired more than 1.5 million drones," said the Director of the Procurement Policy Department of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Hlib Kanievskyi.
According to him, 96% of this amount was paid to Ukrainian manufacturers and suppliers. This had a positive effect on the development of the Ukrainian UAV industry.
"This year, the numbers will be even larger because the domestic defense industry in 2025 will be able to produce about 4.5 million FPV drones. And the Ministry of Defense plans to purchase all of them," emphasized Hlib Kanievskyi.
This year, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine will allocate more than 110 billion UAH for drone procurement, including over 102 billion UAH through the Defense Procurement Agency.
Hlib Kanievskyi added that all procurement plans for 2025 have received budgetary funds. This will allow for the fastest possible saturation of the front with unmanned aerial vehicles.
He also noted that drone production at one of the state-owned enterprises, which the Ministry reported on in January of this year, will positively affect competition. Minimal markups and control by the Ministry at all stages of production may encourage other manufacturers and suppliers to lower prices.
