Ukraine officials met with General Atomics to negotiate the potential acquisition of Reaper and Predator armed drones.
As the country continues to defend itself from Russia’s invasion, members of the Ukrainian government appeal to foreign partners to receive more equipment and ammunition. Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defense of Ukraine, detailed on Twitter the needs of the armed forces: air defense systems, unmanned aircraft, tanks, artillery, combat aircraft, and anti-ship missiles.
Discussions are ongoing with several US-based manufacturers. Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States, Oksana Markarova met with representatives of General Atomics to discuss the potential acquisition of armed drones, the company’s spokesperson C. Mark Brinkley told the Washington Post.
The manufacturer could supply Ukraine with either the MQ-1 Predator or its larger and heavier successor, the MQ-9 Reaper. However, the Ukrainian armed forces do not currently employ either model, meaning that their operation would require training.
Since the beginning of the war, Ukraine has made extensive use of the Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 armed drones it had ordered and received in 2019. The drone destroyed a number of Russian artillery, armored vehicles, and anti-aircraft systems. In early March 2022, amid the conflict, Bayraktar delivered a new batch of its precious aircraft.