UK Announces Biggest Ever Drone Package for Ukraine to Counter Russian Aggression

UK Ministry of Defence

Image: UK MoD © Crown copyright 2023

The UK has announced its largest-ever drone package for Ukraine, pledging a minimum of 120,000 systems for delivery throughout 2026, as Russia continues to intensify aerial attacks on Ukrainian territory.

The package covers long-range strike drones, intelligence and reconnaissance platforms, logistics systems and maritime capabilities, all of which have seen combat use on Ukraine’s frontline. Deliveries began this month.

Defence Secretary John Healey MP travelled to Berlin to co-chair the 34th meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG) alongside German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, Ukrainian Minister of Defence Mykhailo Fedorov and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. The 50-nation group convenes to coordinate international military support for Kyiv.

Escalating drone warfare drives urgency

Russia launched approximately 6,500 one-way attack drones against Ukraine in March 2026 alone, a marked rise on February’s total. Ukrainian forces have simultaneously increased their own drone operations, using the systems for both counterattacks and defensive operations across the frontline.

Healey confirmed the UK will also supply hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds and thousands of air defence missiles for Ukraine this year, all under the wider £3 billion military support commitment announced for 2026.

Speaking at the Berlin meeting, Healey said: “In the fifth year of Putin’s brutal war, the UK is stepping up further and providing the highest ever number of drones for Ukraine this year. With eyes on the Middle East in recent weeks, Putin wants us to be distracted, but nothing will distract us from continuing to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes to secure peace.”

British industry set to benefit

The majority of the package’s investment will go to UK-based companies. Tekever, Windracers and Malloy Aeronautics are among the named suppliers, with the contracts expected to generate new jobs across the country. The Ministry of Defence said the UK drone sector supports both domestic security and wider European deterrence.

The announcement follows a defence partnership agreed last month, under which the UK and Ukraine will collaborate to counter the proliferation of low-cost, high-tech military hardware, including drones.

Building on prior commitments

The package builds on a £500 million air defence commitment announced in February at the UDCG meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels. That package included £150 million for NATO’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List initiative, enabling rapid delivery of air defence interceptors, as well as more than 1,000 Lightweight Multirole Missiles manufactured in Belfast.

A separate £390 million deal was also confirmed at that meeting to deepen UK-Ukraine industrial collaboration, including the transfer of production and support for air defence systems into Ukraine itself.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves was expected to announce further financial support for Ukraine later on Wednesday at a meeting of international finance ministers in Washington DC, according to the UK government.

Source: UK MoD

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