Ukrainian drone manufacturers working at “tremendous pace” - minister

This was stated by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, who spoke in an interview with Suspilne, Ukrinform reports.

"In line with the demand, we are now starting to purchase them (drones - ed.), produce them, work with partners so that they also donate them as international technical assistance. We can meet the target announced by both volunteers and authorities," said the minister.

He emphasized the ministry’s goal to supply as many drones as possible to the Army. After an action plan was drawn for drone supplies in 2024, UAH 55 billion was allocated as the first tranche. The Ministry of Defense is working according to plan — speeding up, increasing the capacity of procurement and production, separately from the already approved UAH 55 billion.

Producers have been working "at a tremendous pace" in recent months, the minister stressed.

Umerov suggests the government could procure all of the 50,000 drones manufactured in Ukraine. "There are 200+ types of drones and several hundred manufacturers - until now, most of them did not operate at such capacity so we’ve begun to test this,” the minister said, adding that the systemic work is ongoing to figure out how to use various types of drones more efficiently, including FPVs, bombers, and sea surface drones.

As reported, at a press conference on December 19, President Volodymyr Zelensky, said Ukraine would produce one million drones for its Defense Forces in 2024.