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Pentagon Looks to Buy Ukrainian Combat Drones and Electronic Warfare Systems
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The United States Department of Defense has requested to test a variety of Ukrainian defense products, including drones and electronic warfare systems, as Washington evaluates them for potential military procurement, according to Bloomberg on May 19.
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The growing interest from the US shows how the world’s largest military wants to utilize the drone expertise Ukraine has gained over four years of fighting against Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
With a mix of new technology and tactics, Kyiv’s forces have managed to strike deep inside Russian territory and slow, or even reverse, the advances of Moscow’s larger army on the battlefield. These operations have also inflicted significant damage on oil facilities that help finance the Kremlin’s war machine.
During the talks with the US, Ukraine argued that its weapons have already undergone extensive combat testing. However, Washington wants to evaluate the products domestically before moving forward. Washington is also seeking access to critical technologies and potentially intellectual property rights that would allow them to replicate the equipment, according to Bloomberg.
Earlier this month, the US sent Kyiv a draft letter of intent requesting to test Ukrainian military products, alongside potential contracts if the systems are chosen. The letter does not specify the details or the scale of the potential agreement and does not guarantee a final deal.
"As a result of working with the State Department and the Pentagon, a draft framework document was developed, which is currently being reviewed by both sides at various institutional levels," said Ukrainian Ambassador to the US Olha Stefanishyna. "We are striving for mutually beneficial cooperation that will strengthen the power of our armed forces."
The Ukrainian Embassy declined to answer specific questions regarding the technology transfer arrangements. The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment.
Kyiv and Washington began talks regarding an agreement to supply Ukrainian weapons to the US several years ago, after Ukraine came under attack from Russia. Since then, Ukraine has rapidly developed advanced military technologies, particularly drones, which have proven critical in the war.
These advancements have also earned praise from the US administration. Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll called the operating system for Ukraine’s drone network "absolutely incredible."
"It completely integrates every drone, every sensor, and every shooting platform into a single unified network," Driscoll told the Senate Armed Services Committee this month. "Our system does not do this."
The draft document appears to be structured to allow the US military to test and evaluate Ukrainian systems to help shape its own future requirements. Beyond this, the US may look to acquire a technological layer unique to Ukraine, which includes AI-based terminal guidance, GPS-free navigation, jam-resistant data links, and battle-tested doctrine.
The Pentagon could also use Ukrainian systems as a baseline for comparison with American equipment. The US aims to purchase a range of currently unidentified military products from Ukraine as part of its military modernization, drawing lessons from past experiences involving drone technologies used by Iran.
Since the beginning of the hostilities involving Iran, Ukraine has been selling its military expertise and interceptor drones to the US and its Gulf allies. In exchange, Kyiv sought urgently needed air defense systems and Patriot missiles, which have proven highly effective in intercepting Russian ballistic missiles.
Technological partnership between Washington and Kyiv has recently reached a major milestone. On May 12, 2026, the United States and Ukraine drafted a memorandum outlining a landmark defense agreement that aimed to allow Kyiv to export its combat-tested military technology to American manufacturers.
Negotiated by the US State Department and Ukrainian Ambassador Olha Stefanishyna, the draft represented the first step toward establishing joint drone manufacturing ventures. The agreement sought to merge Ukraine’s battlefield innovations with American financing, which intended to dramatically expand defense production output for both nations.
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