Ukraine waiting for US to sign proposed drone production deal, Zelensky says
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Ukraine sought to sign a major agreement with the United States on drone production and air defense technologies, but the deal required White House approval and has not yet been finalized, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on March 12.
"We didn't have the opportunity to sign this document yet. I hope that maybe American friends will be closer to this decision now, especially after such challenges as we see in the Middle East," Zelensky said in an interview with Politico, an excerpt of which he published on his Telegram channel.
Zelensky's comments come amid renewed attention in Washington in Ukraine's experience countering Iranian-designed Shahed drones, versions of which Russia has relentlessly deployed in attacks on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
The proposed agreement envisioned cooperation on several types of drones integrated with air defense systems, designed to operate as a unified network capable of countering large-scale aerial attacks.
"They work as a unified system and can protect against hundreds or thousands of Iranian Shahed drones and missiles," Zelensky said.
According to Axios, Ukraine presented US officials with a proposal seven months ago, offering battle-tested systems to counter Shahed drones, including interceptor drones and sensors to detect and destroy them.
The proposal was reportedly dismissed at the time, but recent Iranian drone attacks in the Middle East prompted U.S. officials to reconsider Ukraine's experience and technology, Axios reported on March 10.
Zelensky also said that the duration of Russia's war against Ukraine will depend on the strength of Western pressure on Moscow, particularly economic measures targeting Russian energy revenues.
"If the United States and Europe are strong, if they don't buy Russian oil and gas, if people stand by the principles they declare, and if pressure on Russia is strong and clear — if all these things work properly, the war will end as quickly as possible," he said.
"Otherwise, it will last longer than we expect. Normal people really want it to end tomorrow — or yesterday, as we say."
"But no matter what, Russia doesn't have enough power to occupy us. It simply doesn't." Zelensky added.
