EU and Ukraine seal multibillion‑euro drone production pact in Kyiv

Ukraine and the European Union signed a comprehensive agreement in Kyiv to expand joint drone production. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that the pact will combine Ukraine’s combat‑tested drone expertise with the EU’s industrial scale, aiming to raise annual output from 10 million to 20 million units. Funding will draw on the €90 billion EU loan for Ukraine and the roughly €10 billion still available in the EU’s SAFE defence programme.

The deal, the first to cover all 27 EU member states, also allows drones to be manufactured and temporarily stored within the bloc to shield them from Russian strikes, with a planned transfer to Ukraine or to eastern‑flank member states after two‑to‑three months. The agreement was presented during Kyiv’s Statehood Day ceremony, which was attended by European leaders including Croatia’s Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and other regional heads. Von der Leyen emphasised the need to “combine our strengths” to boost Europe’s security and support Ukraine’s path toward EU membership.