KYIV/MOSCOW – Ukraine has started receiving drones from the biggest ever drone package announced by Britain, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.
“We are grateful to the UK for the largest ever batch of drones for Ukraine… They have already begun arriving and are strengthening our front line,” the ministry said in a statement on Telegram.
This year, Ukraine is expecting to get a total of 120,000 drones as part of the package, including strike, reconnaissance, logistics, and maritime models, the statement said.
Earlier in the day, Britain pledged to deliver at least 120,000 drones to Ukraine this year under the new package.
The initiative is backed by Britain’s wider 3-billion-pound ($4.07 billion) military support for Ukraine this year, as well as the Group of Seven Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration for Ukraine initiative.
Russia: European drone production escalating conflict
Actions by European governments to host and expand production of drones for Ukraine are “drawing the continent deeper into the conflict with Russia,” the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.
“Instead of strengthening the security of , the actions of European leaders are increasingly pulling these countries into war with Russia,” the ministry said in a statement posted on its Telegram channel.
It added that a number of European countries decided on March 26 to scale up the production and supply of drones to Ukraine “amid mounting losses and a worsening shortage of manpower in the Ukrainian Armed Forces.” The increase in output is expected to be supported by expanded funding for Ukrainian and joint enterprises producing strike drones and their components on European soil.
The ministry said that branches of companies described as Ukrainian drone manufacturers are operating in eight European countries, adding that some of these enterprises are involved in producing strike drones, including loitering munitions.