The UK pledged on Wednesday to provide Ukraine with 100,000 drones by the end of the current financial year in April 2026, representing a tenfold increase, after stating that unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have fundamentally transformed the nature of modern warfare.
The government on Monday endorsed an independently produced Strategic Defence Review, which calls for a more lethal, tech-driven army to counter emerging threats, including possible Russian aggression.
Britain, one of Ukraine’s staunchest Western supporters, plans to learn from Kyiv’s more than three-year fight against Russian invasion, during which drones have transformed the battlefield.
$473M Drone Package
The 350-million-pound ($473 million) drone package is part of a broader 4.5-billion-pound military support initiative for Ukraine, the government said.
Defence Secretary John Healey will make the announcement at a 50-nation Ukraine Defence Contact Group meeting in Brussels, co-hosted with Germany.
“The UK is stepping up its support for Ukraine by delivering hundreds of thousands more drones this year and completing a major milestone in the delivery of critical artillery ammunition,” Healey said in a statement ahead of the meeting.
In addition to the drone deliveries, Britain said it has completed the shipment of 140,000 artillery shells to Ukraine since January and will spend a further 247 million pounds this year training Ukrainian troops.
UK Backs Ukraine
Britain has emerged as one of Ukraine’s staunchest Western allies in its more than three-year-long battle against Russia’s full-scale invasion.
From the earliest days of the war, the UK demonstrated unwavering political, military, and humanitarian support for Kyiv, positioning itself at the forefront of the international response to Russian aggression.
The UK’s aid to Ukraine has included the supply of advanced weaponry such as anti-tank missiles, long-range artillery, and air defence systems, as well as cutting-edge drone technology.
British military training programmes have also helped prepare tens of thousands of Ukrainian troops, strengthening the country’s defence forces.
Beyond the battlefield, the UK has imposed sweeping sanctions on Russian entities and oligarchs, aligning closely with NATO and EU allies to isolate Moscow economically and diplomatically.
Humanitarian aid, refugee resettlement programmes, and reconstruction planning have further deepened bilateral ties between London and Kyiv.
($1 = 0.7402 pounds)
(With inputs from Reuters)
