EU and Ukraine launch joint drone production, deepen defense ties

The EU and Ukraine have signed a joint drone production agreement, with the EU committing €1 billion from a €10 billion defence procurement package to support drone development and procurement. This marks a shift from bilateral defence agreements between individual EU states and Ukraine to coordinated EU-level defence industrial cooperation. If you make drone components, sensors, or power systems, the EU just committed €1 billion to a single customer who has operational knowledge at scale. Ukraine's war experience is now an asset that opens EU defence procurement—call Ukrainian integrators this week to understand their supply chain gaps.