Ukraine, UK negotiating joint production of 2,000 interceptor drones monthly
Ukraine and the U.K. are negotiating a joint project to produce interceptor drones, which could yield around 2,000 units per month in the coming months, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 10.
The initiative tackles Ukraine's urgent need for affordable air defense solutions as Russia significantly increases drone attacks, launching over 6,900 Shahed-type attack drones in September alone.
"Very shortly, we'll be producing around 2,000 drones a month, deliberately shipping all of them to Ukraine so they can be used to intercept Russian drones," U.K. Defense Readiness and Industry Minister Luke Pollard told Bloomberg.
The project, called Octopus, is currently in the negotiation stage and could be implemented in the coming months, Pollard said. Production of the interceptor drones will initially be located in the U.K.
"The U.K. is outstanding at R&D and advanced manufacturing, so we can add something that our Ukrainian friends don't have in this respect," he added. "We need to be fast and we need to be first."
The two countries signed an agreement on the production of interceptor drones on Sept. 11.
Ukraine's Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Sept. 18 that Kyiv will be able to deploy at least 1,000 interceptor drones daily to repel Russian attacks "in the near future," without specifying the time range.
The technology is critical for Kyiv as Russia's aerial attacks have escalated over recent months.
Russian Shahed-type drones, originally designed in Iran and mass-produced in Russia under the name Geran-2, have become a central weapon in Moscow's strikes against Ukraine.
Kyiv has rapidly developed its drone capabilities since 2022, evolving from modifying commercial aircraft to producing attack drones and reconnaissance systems on a large scale.
The goal is to intercept every Russian drone over Ukrainian territory, Shmyhal said.
Lucy Pakhnyuk
