United Kingdom to provide 150,000 drones to Ukraine before year-end

After what was described as one of the most significant strikes on Moscow since the war began, the United Kingdom has announced it will supply 150,000 additional drones to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, with delivery due to be completed before the end of the current year. The announcement sits within a package worth more than £750 million set out by London, which also covers a batch of 350 air-defence missiles and air-surveillance radars, funded through a loan under the Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) scheme.

United Kingdom package for Ukraine: 150,000 drones, 350 missiles and radars

Speaking recently, the new UK Defence Secretary, Dan Jarvis, said: “For 75 years, NATO has been the cornerstone of the United Kingdom’s security. My priorities are to strengthen the alliance’s deterrence and defence, and to continue supporting Ukraine in its defence against Russia’s brutal war of aggression. This package of drones, air-defence missiles and radars will help protect innocent Ukrainian people from Putin’s drone and missile bombardment, and it is an honour to welcome President Zelensky to this important meeting (Editor’s note: of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group).”

Diplomatic pressure, sanctions and action against Russia’s “shadow fleet”

In connection with the same meeting, Jarvis also held talks with the Ukrainian President, using the opportunity to hear Ukraine’s requirements directly and to reiterate UK backing once again. In particular, the UK Government’s official statement says it will intensify diplomatic pressure on Russia, tighten economic sanctions, and carry out operations aimed at disrupting the so-called “shadow fleet” used by Moscow to evade restrictions.

During the discussions, it was also confirmed that the United Kingdom will assume leadership of the Multinational Force Ukraine (MNF-U) Headquarters, enabled by the appointment of Major General Tom Bateman, who is set to take up the post next month. The MNF-U is a multinational team made up of various partners supporting Kyiv, and its primary role is to work on what would ultimately be the regeneration of the Armed Forces of Ukraine once a peace agreement is reached.

On the recent Ukrainian attack on Moscow

Returning to the opening reference to the latest Ukrainian strike against Moscow, the reports currently available indicate that hundreds of drones and long-range missiles were used to hit a range of targets, mainly linked to Russia’s oil infrastructure. With a deliberately ironic tone, President Zelensky described the action as “long-range sanctions” carried out by Ukraine’s Armed Forces, presented as a response to a major Russian attack on Kyiv last week-one that stood out for damaging a site of considerable importance to the country’s Orthodox Christianity.

According to statements from Russia’s Ministry of Defence and from the regional governor, Andrei Vorobiov, the operation left around 17 people injured, while the city’s air defences reportedly intercepted several dozen drones. Even so, roughly 200 unmanned systems are said to have reached targets around the Russian capital-an outcome documented by residents in images and videos showing large columns of smoke rising from the impact sites.

One of the principal targets was the Kapotnya refinery, located to the south-east of Moscow and previously hit earlier in the month. This aligns with Ukraine’s newer approach of striking at Russia’s war economy, marking a shift into a phase that goes beyond the defence of Ukrainian cities that had characterised its earlier actions. In some of the footage shared online, an oil storage tank is seen exploding, with its lid blown several metres away from its original position. Fires were also reported at a nearby shopping centre, and all operations at the city’s airports were suspended.

Previous examples of UK drone deliveries to Ukraine

Against this backdrop, it is also worth noting that the United Kingdom has positioned itself as one of Ukraine’s most important drone suppliers, with multiple precedents illustrating that role. Below is a brief review of some notable developments recorded over the last two and a half years of the conflict.

In February 2024, we reported that the United Kingdom reached an agreement with Latvia to establish an international coalition intended to develop and expand Ukraine’s unmanned capabilities, with a long-term goal of introducing up to one million additional systems. At the time, the move was welcomed by the former UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, as well as his Latvian counterpart Andris Sprūds. Sprūds has resigned recently, following an incident involving a Russian drone entering Latvian airspace and the ensuing political turmoil, after the government’s response was judged ineffective; the controversy ultimately brought down the governing coalition.

By January 2025, we also reported that this coalition was ready to send more than 30,000 drones to Ukraine, after contracts worth up to £45 million were signed, funded by the United Kingdom, Denmark, the Netherlands, Latvia and Sweden. With the former Defence Secretary John Healey leading the department at the time, the UK Government said the package included a significant quantity of FPV models, which inflicted notable damage on Russian armoured vehicles deployed into Ukrainian territory. This was stated to apply both to older platforms such as the T-72 and to more modern systems like the T-90.

More recently, the United Kingdom also announced the opening of a new drone production facility for the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the East Anglia region, at a site belonging to Ukrspecsystems, with more than £200 million invested in the project. According to the UK Ministry of Defence, using drones produced by the company up to that point, Ukrainian troops had been able to inflict up to $3 billion in damage on their Russian counterparts.

Images used for illustrative purposes