Britain pledges to deliver 100,000 drones to Ukraine by April 2026
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
The £350 million (S$610.6 million) drone package is part of a broader £4.5 billion military support initiative for Ukraine.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
LONDON - Britain pledged on June 4 to supply 100,000 drones to Ukraine by the end of the current financial year in April 2026, marking a tenfold increase, after saying the unmanned aerial vehicles had transformed the way wars are fought.
The government on June 2 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.
The £350 million (S$610.6 million) drone package is part of a broader £4.5 billion military support initiative for Ukraine, the government said.
British 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," Mr Healey said in a statement ahead of the meeting.
Britain said it has completed the shipment of 140,000 artillery shells to Ukraine since January and will spend a further £247 million in 2025 training Ukrainian troops. REUTERS
